HOUSE OF COMMONS COMMISSION

Westminster Clock Tower

Greg Knight: To ask the hon. Member for Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross, representing the House of Commons Commission, what recent assessment has been made of the structural soundness and stability of the Palace of Westminster clock tower.

John Thurso: A report by expert advisers concluded in 2009 that the tower was structurally stable. That report can be found at:
	http://www.parliament.uk/business/news/2011/october1/big-ben-tilt/
	There are regular inspections of the tower, the most recent, of May 2011, confirming that the tower remains in a sound and stable condition.

TREASURY

Business: Credit

Zac Goldsmith: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what plans he has to introduce credit easing for small businesses.

Mark Hoban: HM Treasury is currently considering a range of options for credit easing as announced by the Chancellor of the Exchequer on 3 October 2011. The Chancellor of the Exchequer will provide more details regarding credit easing at the autumn statement on 29 November.

Coastal Communities Fund

Guto Bebb: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he expects to make a further announcement on arrangements for the coastal communities fund; and if he will make a statement.

Danny Alexander: The Government are working with the Big fund and the devolved Administrations to agree how the Coastal Communities fund will be delivered and an announcement will be made in due course.

Coastal Communities Fund: Wales

Guto Bebb: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent discussions he has had with the (a) Welsh Government and (b) Big Lottery Fund on the use of the coastal communities fund in Wales.

Danny Alexander: The Government have announced that the Coastal Communities fund will operate across the United Kingdom, including Wales. The Government will work with the Welsh Government and the Big fund in taking this forward.

Debts: Iceland

Barry Sheerman: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  when he last met representatives of the Icelandic Government to discuss debts owed to the Government;
	(2)  when he last met representatives of the Icelandic Government to discuss debts owed to UK local authorities;
	(3)  when he last met representatives of the Icelandic Government to discuss reform of the financial regulatory system in that country.

Mark Hoban: Treasury Ministers and officials have meetings with a wide variety of organisations, overseas governments and ministries as part of the process of policy development and delivery. As was the case with previous Administrations, it is not the Government's practice to provide details of all such meetings.

Departmental Disclosure of Information

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer of 10 October 2011, Official Report, column 126W, on departmental disclosure of information, if he will place in the Library the guidance setting out the timetables and processes for obtaining the necessary approvals or collective agreement ahead of party conferences.

Danny Alexander: The timetables and processes for approving conference announcements were set out in correspondence to Cabinet. Such correspondence is not routinely made public. The guidance was consistent with longstanding procedures set out in Managing Public Money and Cabinet Committee Guidance. This includes that any proposals with financial implications must be cleared by the Treasury.

Departmental Theft

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what items worth more than £100 were stolen from his Department in 2010-11.

Chloe Smith: The following items, worth more than £100, were stolen from the Treasury during the 12 months ending December 2010:
	
		
			  Number 
			 Laptop computers 3 
			 BlackBerry mobile device 1 
		
	
	All the laptop computers involved in these thefts were encrypted devices which are not accessible without a security token and two different passwords. The BlackBerry was also password protected.
	No tokens or passwords were left with these items, and accordingly there was no data loss in any of the cases. Steps were also taken to ensure that they provided no means of access to any of the Treasury's IT systems.

Derelict Land: Regeneration

Zac Goldsmith: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what consideration he has given to providing an additional fiscal incentive for brownfield redevelopment.

Danny Alexander: The Government have no plans to create an additional fiscal incentive for brownfield development.
	The Government are giving responsibility to local authorities and communities to choose which developable land should be used to meet their needs for growth. We expect that local authorities will want a very significant proportion of development to still take place on previously developed land.

Devolution

Guto Bebb: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what Barnett consequentials were paid to the devolved administrations as a result of the decision to freeze council tax in April 2011; and how much will be paid in such consequentials in April 2012.

Danny Alexander: The 2010 spending review settlement for local government included £0.7 billion to enable English local authorities to freeze their council tax in 2011-12. The devolved Administrations received Barnett consequentials of the change to the local government settlement.
	The Chancellor of the Exchequer announced support for local authorities (LAs) in England who wish to freeze their council tax in 2012-13 at his conference speech. There will be a one off payment to those LAs in 2011-12 who agree to freeze their council tax in 2012-13. The total cost of this is estimated to be £805 million.
	Within this the devolved Administrations will receive Barnett consequentials of £67.5 million for Scotland; £38.9 million for Wales and £22.6 million for Northern Ireland.

European Fighter Aircraft

Graham Jones: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what discussions (a) he and (b) his officials have had with their counterparts in the Ministry of Defence on tranche 3B of Eurofighter.

Danny Alexander: The Chancellor of the Exchequer, my right hon. Friend the Member for Tatton (Mr Osborne), has had no specific discussions on tranche 3B with his counterpart in the MOD. Treasury officials discussed the potential size of tranche 3 numerous times with the MOD prior to contract signature in 2009.

Financial Markets: EU Law

Stephen Phillips: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment his Department has made of the potential effects on the City of London of EU regulation of over-the-counter derivative trading.

Mark Hoban: The Government fully support the efforts to reduce systemic risk in over-the-counter (OTC) derivatives trading through the full implementation of G20 commitments.
	As the legislative process in the EU progresses, the Treasury keeps in regular contact with market participants and end users to understand the potential effects of regulation. The Government are committed to ensuring that the OTC market in London is both safe and efficient.

Financial Services

Harriett Baldwin: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what discussions he has had with the Financial Services Authority on recent trends in its use of powers under section 166 of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 to nominate skilled person assessments of financial services firms.

Mark Hoban: Treasury Ministers and officials meet senior members of the Financial Services Authority on a regular basis to discuss a wide range of economic and financial issues. As was the case with previous Administrations, it is not the Government's practice to provide details of such meetings.

Financial Services: Regulation

Stephen Phillips: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent progress he has made on the international implementation of the Basel III agreement.

Mark Hoban: At the September 2011 Washington summit, Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors of the G-20 reiterated the commitment made by the G-20 leaders at the 2010 Seoul summit to fully implement Basel III along the agreed timelines. In the EU, Basel III will be implemented through legislation on prudential requirements for credit institutions and investment firms, which the Commission adopted proposals for on 20 July 2011.

Gold and Foreign Exchange Reserves

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent discussions he has had with the Governor of the Bank of England on the UK's gold reserves.

Mark Hoban: In its role as HM Treasury's agent for the Official Reserves, the Bank of England routinely provides advice to HM Treasury on management of the reserves, including gold.

HM Revenue and Customs

Alison Seabeck: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what steps he is taking to ensure that the (a) IT and (b) other arrangements for HM Revenue and Customs real time service will be operational and fully tested before the proposed start date of the universal credit in 2013.

David Gauke: HMRC is on track to deliver the IT required for the introduction of Real Time Information (RTI). The internet test service for payroll software developers was launched on 26 September 2011, in line with plans.
	RTI will be piloted from April 2012 with volunteer payroll software providers and employers. This means that a full year of testing will have taken place before employers and pension providers will be required to start submitting RTI in April 2013. HMRC expects all employers and pension providers to be using RTI by October 2013 in time for the introduction of universal credit.

Housing Revenue Accounts: Hampshire

George Hollingbery: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  if he will estimate the amount that would be saved by Portsmouth city council as a result of the lowering of interest rates for the Housing Revenue Account Buy Out if the units in the Wecock Farm area of Meon Valley constituency were financed entirely from the Public Works Loan Board (a) annually and (b) over a 40-year period;
	(2)  if he will estimate the amount that would be saved by Southampton city council as a result of the lowering of interest rates for the Housing Revenue Account Buy Out if the sum required was financed entirely from the Public Works Loan Board (a) annually and (b) over a 40-year period.
	(3)  if he will estimate the amount that would be saved by Fareham borough council as a result of the lowering of interest rates for the Housing Revenue Account Buy Out if the sum required was financed entirely from the Public Works Loan Board (a) annually and (b) over a 40-year period;
	(4)  if he will estimate the amount that would be saved by Winchester city council as a result of the lowering of interest rates for the Housing Revenue Account Buy Out if the sum required was financed entirely from the Public Works Loan Board (a) annually and (b) over a 40-year period;
	(5)  if he will estimate the amount that would be saved by New Forest district council as a result of the lowering of interest rates for the Housing Revenue Account Buy Out if the sum required was financed entirely from the Public Works Loan Board (a) annually and (b) over a 40-year period.

Andrew Stunell: I have been asked to reply.
	The Government are reducing the cost of borrowing from the Public Works Loan Board to finance the self-financing settlement payments related to the reform of council housing finance. The cost of borrowing for this purpose will be reduced by an average of 87 basis points compared to the interest currently charged for other borrowing.
	The following table shows the potential savings from this interest rate reduction. It is based on the indicative settlement payments published by the Department in February 2011 and assumes that the whole amount would be borrowed from the Public Works Loan Board. Settlement payments are calculated on a whole authority basis, so it is not possible to attribute savings to particular areas within a local authority. These savings would accrue every year of a long-term loan, in nominal cash terms.
	
		
			 £ million 
			 Local authority Indicative settlement payment Annual interest saving Cash saving s over 40 years (if taken as 40- year loan) 
			 Portsmouth 81.4 0.7 28.3 
			 Southampton 63.7 0.6 22.2 
			 Fareham 47 0.4 16.4 
			 Winchester 151.6 1.3 52.8 
			 New Forest 139.4 1.2 48.5

Local Government: Pensions

David Anderson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will instruct his Department not to play a role in negotiations on changes to the Local Government Pension Scheme. [R]

Danny Alexander: HM Treasury has overall responsibility for public service pension policy and public expenditure.
	The Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government has responsibility for the rules of the Local Government Pension scheme.
	On 20 July the Secretary of State invited discussions between the Local Government Group and local government trade unions with a view to establishing a package of measures to secure short term savings. The Government began consultation on 7 September on consequent proposals. The Government will consult on wider reforms based on recommendations of the Independent Public Service Pensions Commission, in due course.

Money: Counterfeit Manufacturing

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what steps he plans to take to reduce the number of counterfeit coins in circulation.

Chloe Smith: The Royal Mint and the Treasury are working with banks, the Post Office, cash handling and sorting businesses, the police and the vending industry to remove counterfeit £1 coins from circulation before they reach the pockets of members of the public. Coin handling businesses, such as banks and the Post Office, handle over 3 billion £1 coins every year. They use high-speed, automated systems to process customer deposits and prepare coins for reissue. These automated systems are capable of detecting and withdrawing a significant number of counterfeit coins. All counterfeit coins detected from coin processing are sent to the Royal Mint for disposal.
	The Royal Mint holds briefing to educate the public and the coin handling industry on how to identify counterfeits, and has issued educational leaflets and posters.
	The Royal Mint is also working with other validator and coin sorting manufacturers to help improve the counterfeit detection rate.

Money: Counterfeit Manufacturing

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the value was of counterfeit bank notes seized in each year since 1997.

Chloe Smith: The face value of counterfeit Bank of England notes removed from circulation since 1997 is set out in the following table:
	
		
			  £ million 
			 1997 7.5 
			 1998 7.3 
			 1999 3.8 
			 2000 3.9 
			 2001 2.9 
			 2002 6.0 
			 2003 6.6 
			 2004 6.4 
			 2005 10.0 
			 2006 7.8 
			 2007 5.9 
			 2008 13.7 
			 2009 11.2 
			 2010 5.9

Money: Counterfeit Manufacturing

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the value of counterfeit bank notes in circulation.

Chloe Smith: In 2010, 300,000 counterfeit Bank of England notes with a face value of £5.9 million were taken out of circulation.
	Details of the number of counterfeit Bank of England notes taken out of circulation are published on the Bank's website at:
	http://www.bankofengland.co.uk/banknotes/about/counterfeits.htm

Money: Counterfeit Manufacturing

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what steps he is taking to reduce the number of counterfeit bank notes in circulation.

Chloe Smith: Issuance of banknotes in England and Wales is a key role of the Bank of England. As part of this objective, the bank has an anti-counterfeiting strategy to reduce the number of counterfeit Bank of England notes. The bank's approach to the monitoring and reduction of counterfeits is outlined on its website at:
	http://www.bankofengland.co.uk/banknotes/about/counterfeits.htm

National Insurance Contributions: Durham

Pat Glass: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many businesses in (a) Durham and (b) North West Durham constituency have participated in the national insurance contributions holiday scheme.

David Gauke: Information for applications from Durham is not available as data are not provided on the city or county level.
	A breakdown of successful applications for the NICs holiday by constituency will be published in the NICs Holiday Factsheet in the House of Commons Library in the autumn.

NDFA Fixed Income Plan

James Wharton: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he has considered providing compensation to holders of the NDFA Fixed Income Plan June 08 following the entry into administration of Lehman Brothers.

Mark Hoban: I refer the hon. Gentleman to the answer I gave on 10 October 2011, Official Report, column 130W.

Public Expenditure

Iain Wright: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will increase departmental capital expenditure limits for the purposes of increasing job creation, economic productivity and potential economic growth.

Danny Alexander: As a result of the spending review, capital spending will be £2.3bilion higher than planned under the March 2010 budget.
	To make sure these plans are fulfilled, I am working closely with cabinet colleagues to ensure that spending is not stockpiled and that capital budgets are delivered on time. This has already released £500 million for the Growing Places initiative.

Public Sector: Pensions

Emma Reynolds: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether the revenue from the planned increase in public sector employee pension contributions will be paid directly into the appropriate pension fund.

Danny Alexander: At the spending review the UK Government announced an increase in member contribution rates for all public service pension schemes, except the armed forces. This is based on the clear rationale set out in the Independent Public Service Pensions Commission's interim report, for making savings by increasing employee contribution rates. This will save a total of £2.8 billion a year from 2014-15, equivalent to an increase in contribution rates of 3.2 percentage points, phased in over three years from April 2012.
	In unfunded public service schemes, the largest of which is the NHS Pension scheme, there is no pot from which member and employer contributions are invested. Instead, due benefits are paid from the contributions of current members with any surplus paid for by the Exchequer.
	In funded public service schemes, the largest of which is the Local Government Pension scheme, member and employer contributions are paid into a fund. This is invested, and benefits are paid from it when due. For funded schemes, increased member contributions resulting from the spending review measures will be paid directly into the appropriate pension fund.

Taxation: Business

Priti Patel: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what his position is in respect of the discussions due to take place at the Code of Conduct Group (Business Taxation) meeting in Brussels on 20 October 2011 relating to (a) item 1 on UK-Gibraltar and (b) item 2 on Guernsey; and if he will make a statement.

David Gauke: The Code of Conduct Group (Business Taxation) will meet on 20 October 2011. The agenda for the meeting includes Gibraltar's Income Tax Act 2010, and developments concerning the reform of Guernsey's corporate tax regime.
	Under the terms of the Code of Conduct for Business Taxation, the UK is committed, within its constitutional arrangements, to ensuring that the principles of the code are applied in its dependent and overseas territories, including both Gibraltar and Guernsey.

Taxation: Business

Luciana Berger: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the total tax revenue raised from businesses in the low carbon sector in the last financial year.

David Gauke: When tax receipts are collected by HMRC, businesses are not required to define whether or not they are low carbon. Accordingly, the information requested is not available.

Taxation: Business

Luciana Berger: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the average tax take from a small business in each of its first five years of trading in the latest period for which figures are available.

David Gauke: The information requested is not available.

VAT

Steve Rotheram: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent discussions he has had with (a) the Prime Minister, (b) the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills and (c) the Chief Secretary to the Treasury on the rate of value added tax.

David Gauke: The Chancellor of the Exchequer takes decisions on fiscal policy, including tax rates, in the Budget. Like his predecessors, the Chancellor informs these decisions through discussions with the Prime Minister and other colleagues.

ENERGY AND CLIMATE CHANGE

Carbon Dioxide: Feed-in Tariffs

Glyn Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what estimate he has made of the range of emission abatement costs in pounds per tonne of carbon dioxide under the feed-in tariff scheme for wind power.

Gregory Barker: The cost per tonne of CO2 of wind power supported under the Feed-in Tariffs (FITs) scheme is estimated to be around £270 (real discounted 2008 prices).
	This estimate is based the FITs model for the 2010 final impact assessment, updated for energy demand and fossil fuel prices in March 2011. These estimates will be updated for the FITs comprehensive review.

Climate Change

Lindsay Roy: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what steps the Government is taking to ensure that the UK meets its emissions targets under the Climate Change Act 2008.

Gregory Barker: holding answer 17 October 2011
	The Prime Minister pledged to make this the greenest Government ever and announced earlier this year that carbon emissions from Government HQs and offices have been cut by nearly 14% in just one year. Following this, he committed the Government to go further by reducing emissions by 25% by 2015. We are also supporting greater energy efficiency across the economy by introducing the Green Deal, revolutionising the way heat is generated and used through the Renewable Heat Incentive, and rolling-out smart meters and a smart grid to build on this progress. Moreover, on 12 July 2011 the Government published ‘Planning our electric future: a White Paper for secure, affordable and low-carbon electricity'. The White Paper sets out key reforms to the electricity market to attract investment, reduce the impact on consumer bills, and create a secure mix of low-carbon electricity sources including renewables, new nuclear and carbon capture and storage.
	Emissions projections, published on 13 October 2011, show that the UK is on track, on central forecasts, to meet our first three carbon budgets and our 2020 target to reduce emissions by at least 34% against the 1990 baseline. Emissions have already been reduced by over 26%, taking into account the effects of emissions trading.
	We have also set in legislation the level of the fourth carbon budget for the period 2023-27 which equates to more than a 50% reduction in emissions. This autumn, the Government will be publishing a comprehensive strategy which will set out how the fourth carbon budget might be met, pathways to our 2050 target and a set of milestones which will set out shorter-term actions the Government commits to undertake to keep us on track to deliver our ambitious climate change goals.

Combined Heat and Power

Martin Caton: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the contribution of the Minister of State, Department of Energy and Climate Change, the hon. Member for Bexhill and Battle (Gregory Barker) to the Public Bill Committee on the Energy Bill [Lords] of 21 June 2011, Written Evidence, columns 444-6, what steps he plans to take to progress passive flue gas and micro combined heat and power technologies; and if he will make a statement.

Gregory Barker: Following the discussion of these technologies at Committee Stage of the Energy Bill, the department has progressed the agenda in line with the commitment given at the end of that debate. My officials met the hon. Member for Southampton Test (Dr Whitehead), shortly afterwards and have also held talks with industry bodies.
	In August the Micropower Council organised an event on micro-CHP involving senior DECC officials and the leading players from across the industry, and as a result of that meeting, the industry will shortly be presenting Government with proposals for progressing this technology. Micro-CHP already receives support from the feed-in tariff.
	Passive flue gas heat recovery systems are included as an eligible technology under the green deal. The secondary legislation implementing that policy is now being drawn up.

Departmental Contracts

Stewart Hosie: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what contracts of a monetary value of (a) between £100,000 and £500,000, (b) between £500,000 and £1 million, (c) between £1 million and £5 million, (d) between £5 million and £10 million, (e) between £10 million and £50 million, (f) between £50 million and £100 million, (g) between £100 million and £500 million, (h) between £500 million and £1 billion, (i) between £1 billion and £5 billion and (j) over £5 billion his Department has entered into with private suppliers in each year since its inception.

Gregory Barker: Details of contracts entered into are set out by value and by financial year in the following lists. The Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) was established in October 2008. Information for 2008-09 could be provided only at disproportionate cost from the procurement records of the Departments from which DECC was established (i.e. the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills and the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs).
	2009-10
	£100,000 to £500,000
	Financial support lead for carbon capture and storage (CCS) demonstration 1
	CCS project management support
	CCS demonstration project commercial support manager
	Provision of technical lead for CCS demonstration 1 competition internal team
	CCS demonstration provision of geological advice
	£500,000 to £1,000,000
	None
	£1,000,000 to £5,000,000
	Measurement and interpretation of atmospheric gases
	Information computer technology
	Oil and gas maximising recovery programme—three projects
	CCS demonstration 1 project technical support
	Financial advice for CCS demonstration 1
	Legal advice for CCS demonstration 1 competition
	£5,000,000 to £10,000,000
	Expert support on CC&S delivery of demos 2-4
	£10,000 ,000  to £50,000 ,000
	Legal support, advice and claims handling in respect of claims for liabilities resulting from the former British Coal Corporation
	£50,000 ,000  to £100,000 ,000
	Provision of front end engineering and design (FEED) studies for demonstration 1 competition (1)
	Provision of FEED studies for demonstration 1 competition (2)
	Over £100,000,000
	None
	2010-11
	£100,000 to £500,000
	Assessment of options to improve GB gas security of supply
	Avoiding dangerous climate change (AVOID) programme
	Bioenergy grants management
	Demand side response (DSR) and smart grid cost/benefit analysis
	Electricity market reform—instrument design
	Electricity market reform—legal advice
	Electronic radar tool to support micro/small wind
	Expert support on assessing carbon capture and storage and innovative renewable new entrants reserve (NER) applications
	Financial support levels for renewables electricity in the UK
	Geological advice for the carbon capture and storage demonstration
	Renewables obligation banding review 2010-13—modelling the impact of different support scenarios
	Technical support on assessing carbon capture and storage new entrants reserve applications
	UK green house gas inventory improvement programme
	£500,000 to £1,000,000
	UK national contact point service for framework programme 7 and intelligent energy Europe 2 programmes
	£1,000,000 to £5,000,000
	Smart metering programme
	£5,000,000 to £10,000,000
	None
	£10,000,000 to £50,000,000
	None
	£50,000,000 to £100,000 ,000
	None
	Over £100,000,000
	None
	2011-12
	£100,000 to £500,000
	Share point team sites development and implementation
	£500,000 to £1,000,000
	None
	£1,000,000 to £5,000,000
	None
	£5,000,000 to  £10,000,000
	None
	£10,000,000 to £50,000,000
	None
	£50,000,000 to £100,000,000
	None
	Over £100,000,000
	None

Official Hospitality

Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how much his Department spent on hospitality for events hosted by each Minister in his Department in each of the last 12 months.

Gregory Barker: Hospitality expenditure incurred by the Department of Energy and Climate Change and attributable to its Ministers was £5,000 in the 12 month period ending September 2011 as summarised in the following table.
	Hospitality represents expenditure on food and drink provided at meetings and events for the benefit of guests outside of the Department. All expenditure was incurred in accordance with the Department's policy on hospitality which requires that:
	all expenditure must be fully and properly authorised and accounted for;
	there must be a clear and justifiable reason for expenditure on hospitality i.e. where there is direct Government interest in promoting the Department);
	the nature of the hospitality should not be excessive to the purpose for which it is given;
	the number of members of the Department present should be reasonable in relation to the nature of the occasion; and
	personal benefit to the participating staff must be incidental and, where relevant, abated by adjustment of any claims for subsistence.
	
		
			 October 2010 - September 2011 £ 
			 October 358 
			 November 981 
			 December 1,670 
			 January 603 
			 February 93 
			 March 432 
			 April — 
			 May — 
			 June 266 
			 July -90 
			 August 335 
			 September 443 
			 12 months Total 5,091

Procurement

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many contracts his Department has awarded directly to (a) small, (b) medium-sized and (c) large businesses in each month since May 2010; what the value was of such contracts; and if he will make a statement.

Gregory Barker: The Department of Energy and Climate Change does not currently record the size of the companies to whom it has awarded contracts and it would incur disproportionate cost to establish this information. However, out of the 40 contracts advertised, 19 contracts with an estimated value of under £100,000 were suitable for small business to apply for.

Electric Cables: Design

Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how much his Department has spent on the competition to design new electricity pylons; and for what purposes.

Charles Hendry: The Department has spent £45,000 on the competition to design new electricity pylons. This includes the Royal Institute of British Architects competition management fees, a prize fund of £10,000 (shared between the winners and the shortlist) and design, installations production and management costs around the V&A exhibition, which formed part of this year's London Design Festival. The competition has been highly successful in generating interest and debate within the design industry and the wider public in the visual acceptability of future energy infrastructure:
	www.ribapylondesign.com

Green Deal Scheme

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change if he will publish a response to the Green Deal Call for Evidence published on behalf of his Department in March 2011.

Gregory Barker: Alongside the public consultation on the Green Deal and the Energy Company Obligation, to be published later this year, DECC will report on how the Green Deal Call for Evidence has fed into policy development. We do not intend to produce a detailed report of all the submissions as this would breach commercial confidences.

Mixed Oxide Fuel: Sellafield

Michael Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change if he will estimate the building and commissioning costs in current prices of the mixed-oxide fuel plant at Sellafield.

Charles Hendry: Capital costs of £498 million and commissioning costs of £139.4 million were incurred on the Sellafield MOX Plant over the period from 1994 to 2001 prior to plutonium being introduced into the plant and it becoming fully active. A very high level estimate performed by the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority of the current cost equivalent of these sums is £0.9 billion which has been arrived at by using the retail prices index to escalate costs.

Mixed Oxide Fuel: Sellafield

Michael Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what targets the Mox plant at Sellafield was set for the production of mixed-oxide fuel in each year of its operation; and how many tonnes of Mox were produced in each year.

Charles Hendry: The original target was for the Sellafield MOX Plant (SMP) to produce 120 tonnes of Heavy Metal (tHM) of mixed oxide fuel a year. This was revised in 2000-01 to 72 tHM per annum. The annual throughput target was later downgraded again, first to 38 tHM to 40 tHM in 2003 and then to 8 tHM to 15 tHM in 2008. The actual production rates of completed assemblies (in tHM) for SMP year by year are as follows:
	
		
			  tHM 
			 2002-03 0.0 
			 2003-04 0.0 
			 2004-05 0.3 
			 2005-06 2.3 
			 2006-07 2.6 
			 2007-08 0.0 
			 2008-09 1.1 
			 2009-10 4.8 
			 2010-11 2.7

Nuclear Installations

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change with reference to the report by HM Chief Inspector of Nuclear Installations, September 2011, paragraph 475, when he expects to receive the final report of the Sellafield Ltd review of cooling, ventilation, inerting and containment systems and the availability and reliability of these systems under accident conditions.

Charles Hendry: Monitoring of the systems at Sellafield, and the activities of Sellafield Ltd, is carried out by the Office for Nuclear Regulation (ONR). Sellafield Ltd is committed to produce stress test reports relating to the Calder Hall Reactors and the final report on these will be submitted to the ONR by 31 October 2011; in line with European requirements. A final report covering the other nuclear facilities on the Sellafield site will be submitted to the ONR by the end of December 2011. Together these reports constitute the Sellafield Ltd review, referred to in the chief inspector's report. The chief inspector will keep DECC up to date with progress.

Third Sector: Correspondence

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many letters he has received on funding for civil society organisations within his Department's area of responsibility in each month since 1 June 2010; and if he will make a statement.

Gregory Barker: The Department received one request under the Freedom of Information Act regarding funding for civil sector organisations in August 2010, one in November 2010, and three in February 2011.
	In addition the Department received two non-FOI queries regarding funding for civil sector organisations in December 2010, one in January 2011, and two in February 2011.
	The Department has not received any requests under the Freedom of Information Act regarding funding for civil sector organisations since April 2011.
	The Department received one non-FOI query regarding funding for civil sector organisations in April 2011, one in June 2011, one in August 2011, one in September 2011 and one so far in October 2011.
	Queries regarding grants to civil society organisations under the Low Carbon Communities Challenge and Low Carbon Buildings Programme are excluded as to identify them would incur disproportionate costs.

Wind Power: Feed-in Tariffs

Glyn Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what estimate he has made of the total net cost of feed-in tariffs for wind power taking into account monetised benefits of these subsidies up to 2030.

Gregory Barker: The total net resource cost of wind power incentivised through the Feed-in Tariffs (FITs) is estimated at around £900 million, cumulative to 2030 (real 2008 prices, discounted).
	This estimate is based on the FITs model for the 2010 final impact assessment, updated for energy demand and fossil fuel prices in March 2011. These estimates will be updated for the FITs comprehensive review.

NORTHERN IRELAND

Business Tax Rates

Philip Hollobone: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what discussions he has had with (a) HM Treasury and (b) the Northern Ireland Executive on the effect on the Northern Ireland economy of business tax rates in the Republic of Ireland.

Owen Paterson: I have had extensive discussions with colleagues in HM Treasury and the Northern Ireland Executive on options for Rebalancing the Northern Ireland Economy in relation to the recent Government consultation of that title. These discussions have included consideration of the impact on the economy of differential corporation tax rates in Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. The Government response to the consultation will be published in due course.

HOME DEPARTMENT

Alcoholic Drinks: Antisocial Behaviour

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate she has made of the total cost to the public purse of policing alcohol-related antisocial behaviour in (a) 2009 and (b) 2010; and what she estimates such costs will be in (i) 2011, (ii) 2012 and (iii) 2013.

Nick Herbert: holding answer 12 October 2011
	The policing of antisocial behaviour, including alcohol-related antisocial behaviour, is an operational matter for local police forces. The Government do not collect data centrally on these costs nor have they made projections on future costs.

Alcoholic Drinks: Sales

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate she has made of total alcohol sales in (a) 2011, (b) 2012, (c) 2013, (d) 2014 and (e) 2015.

James Brokenshire: holding answer 12 October 2011
	The Home Office does not undertake modelling to project future alcohol sales. The Office for Budget Responsibility forecasts alcohol revenues, using a forecast of UK duty paid clearances and projected duty rates. The Budget 2011 receipts forecast can be found here:
	http://budgetresponsibitity.independent.gov.uk/pubs/economic_and_fiscal_
	The revenue forecasts will be updated in the OBR's Economic and Fiscal Outlook on 29 November, alongside the autumn statement.

Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when a decision will be reached on the inclusion of legislation from the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 into the framework of European Directive 2010/63/EU.

Lynne Featherstone: European Directive 2010/63/EU must be transposed into UK legislation by 10 November 2012 and must be implemented from 1 January 2013.
	The public consultation on options for transposition of the directive closed on 5 September 2011. Decisions on options will be taken after responses have been carefully considered.

Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department which of the measures in force under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 will be retained after the introduction into UK legislation of the provisions of European Directive 2010/63/EU.

Lynne Featherstone: Article 2 to directive 2010/63/EU on the protection of animals used for scientific purposes allows member states to retain stricter national provisions in force on 9 November 2010 provided such measures are not used to inhibit the free market by prohibiting or impeding the supply or use of animals from another member state applying the minimum standards set out in the directive, or the placing on the market of products developed with the use of such animals. The public consultation on the transposition of European directive 2010/63/EU which closed on 5 September 2011 invited views on the use of article 2 in transposing the directive into UK legislation. Responses to the consultation will be carefully considered before decisions are taken on how to proceed with regard to this issue.

Asylum

John Spellar: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many legacy asylum cases had not been resolved on the most recent date for which figures are available.

Damian Green: The agency completed its review of all cases in the legacy cohort at the end of March 2011. A total of 500,500 cases were reviewed as part of the programme and the majority (455,000) have been fully concluded.
	The UK Border Agency established the Case Assurance and Audit Unit (CAAU) to actively manage those 23,000 cases which had been reviewed but had barriers to conclusion. All these cases have been decided and communicated to the applicants.
	The CAAU has now fully concluded 1,500 of those cases. It has also issued around 3,000 grants which are subject to information from the applicant in order to complete a final security check.
	The UK Border Agency is actively managing around 18,000 cases which have been considered to the furthest possible point but barriers to their removal remain.
	These barriers include ongoing litigation, impending prosecution, incomplete legal or criminal proceedings, non-compliance or that people are from difficult to remove countries. These cases are being actively considered and will be concluded when those barriers have been lifted.
	Note:
	All figures rounded to the nearest 500.

Asylum

Shabana Mahmood: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  what proportion of asylum cases received a decision within six months in (a) 2009, (b) 2010 and (c) in the period from 1 January to 1 September 2011;
	(2)  what the average processing time was between an individual claiming asylum and receiving a decision on their application (a) as of 1 September 2011 and (b) in each of the last five years.

Damian Green: The proportion of asylum cases that received an initial decision within six months in 2009 was 82%, in 2010 was 94% and from January—February 2011 was 93%. As of 1 September 2011, information was not yet complete for the March 2011 cohort or beyond, as the six month time period stipulated had not yet elapsed.
	The average processing time between an individual claiming asylum and receiving an initial decision on their application over the last five years is as follows:
	
		
			 Year (1) Average decision time (Days) (2) 
			 2007 164.06 
			 2008 190.27 
			 2009 122.83 
			 2010 52.03 
			 2011(3) 36.54 
			 (1) Year based on application date. (2) All figures quoted are internal management information only and are subject to change. This information has not been quality assured under National Statistics protocols. Excludes legacy cases. Averages based on cases where decisions had already been taken as of 1 September 2011. (3) Covers the period 1 January 2011 to 1 September 2011. 
		
	
	On 25 August the UK Border Agency published information on the percentage of asylum applications decided and concluded within published standards. This information can be found on the UK Border Agency website at:
	http://www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk/sitecontent/documents/aboutus/further-key-data/
	These statistics show that in the financial year 2010-11, 59% of decisions were taken within 30 days of application.

Asylum: Peterborough

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many legacy cases of individuals normally resident in the Peterborough City Council area have been granted indefinite leave to remain in each quarter since 5 May 2010; and if she will make a statement.

Damian Green: The UK Border Agency has provided the requested information in the following table. We have sourced this information through the utilisation of postcodes from the Peterborough area.
	
		
			  Period Grants of ILR 
			 2010 May-June 86 
			  July-September 122 
			  October-December 104 
			  Total sum 312 
			    
			 2011 January-March 67 
			  April-June 20 
		
	
	
		
			  July-September 2 
			  October-December 2 
			  Total sum 91 
			 Source: Local management information provided by UK Border Agency, North West Region Planning and MI Team. It is not a National Statistic. As such it should be treated as provisional and therefore subject to change. Postcodes used to obtain this information were PE1 to PE38.

Debt Collection

Austin Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if she will issue guidance to police forces and police authorities on the application of the provisions of the Fraud Act 2006 to (a) bailiff operations and (b) local authority officials who employ private bailiff companies.

James Brokenshire: I have no plans to issue guidance to police forces and police authorities on the application of the provisions of the Fraud Act 2006 to (a) bailiff operations and (b) local authority officials who employ private bailiff companies.
	Decisions on whether and how to investigate a crime rest solely with the police. Such operational issues are the ultimate responsibility of the chief officer of the force concerned.

Departmental Billing

Eilidh Whiteford: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what proportion of invoices from suppliers her Department paid within 10 days of receipt in July and August 2010.

Damian Green: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given on 13 September 2010, Official Report, columns 873-74W.

Departmental Re-location

Michael Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many civil servants in her Department have been (a) relocated and (b) agreed to relocation in the last 12 months; and to which areas of the UK.

Damian Green: Information about how many civil servants have been relocated in the past year could be provided only by the detailed analysis of individual case records at disproportionate cost.

Departmental Pay

Michael Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if she will estimate the total monetary value of London weightings and London living allowances for staff in her Department.

Damian Green: In the last financial year, the total amount paid out to staff in the Home Office as London weighting/living allowances was approximately £22 million.

Procurement

Stewart Hosie: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what contracts of a monetary value of (a) between £100,000 and £500,000, (b) between £500,000 and £1 million, (c) between £1 million and £5 million, (d) between £5 million and £10 million, (e) between £10 million and £50 million, (f) between £50 million and £100 million, (g) between £100 million and £500 million, (h) between £500 million and £1 billion, (i) between £1 billion and £5 billion and (j) over £5 billion her Department has entered into with private suppliers in each year since 1990.

Damian Green: Details of contracts entered in to by the Home Department and its executive agencies prior to 2008 are not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost. Details of contracts with private suppliers entered into by the Department including its executive agencies since 2008 will be placed in the Libraries of the House.

Cyber-Security

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps her Department is taking to improve cyber-security in relation to her Department's estate; and if she will make a statement.

James Brokenshire: The Home Office takes cyber-security very seriously. Our IT suppliers are contracted to meet rigorous security requirements and cyber-security is an integral part of every Home Office IT system.
	The Home Office operates an appropriate, proportionate and effective regime for cyber-security across its estate and has the necessary skilled resource in place. The Department does not comment on the specific measures it takes relating to cyber-security.

Sick Leave

Mike Freer: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department for how many days on average her Department's staff in each pay grade were absent from work as a result of ill health in 2010-11.

Damian Green: The following table includes the average working days lost to sickness absence for each pay grade in the Home Department in the financial year 2010-11. Figures include Home Office headquarters as well as the Department's executive agencies—United Kingdom Border Agency, Identity and Passport Service and Criminal Records Bureau.
	
		
			 Average working days lost by grade 2010-11 
			 Grade Average working days lost (days) (1) 
			 AA 9.76 
			 AO 9.60 
			 EO 8.26 
			 HEO 6.51 
			 SEO 4.69 
			 Grade 7 3.68 
			 Grade 6 1.75 
			 SCS 0.90 
		
	
	
		
			 Total 7.83 
			 (1) Figures given are based on paid civil servants only and include current employees and those who left the Home Office during the period, in line with Cabinet Office reporting guidelines. Figures include Home Office headquarters, the United Kingdom Border Agency, Identity and Passport Service and Criminal Records Bureau. Note: Prior to February 2011 responses to requests for information relating to the “Home Department” included information for headquarters staff only—executive agencies were excluded from reported figures. Since February 2011 the Department has streamlined its reporting practices and departmental figures now include both headquarters and all executive agencies. This means that it is not possible to make a direct comparison between information provided in this response and any responses made before February 2011. Source: Permanent Secretaries Management Group Cabinet Office return, Quarter 1 2011 Extract date: 1 April 2011 (figures based on period from 1 April 2010 to 31 March 2011).

Detention Centres: Children

Shabana Mahmood: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many times children detained at immigration centres have been held separately from their parents for (a) less than 12 hours, (b) between 12 and 24 hours and (c) more than 24 hours in the last 12 months.

Damian Green: We now only hold families with children as a matter of last resort to facilitate their removal from the UK where they refuse to leave voluntarily and then on the advice of the independent Family Returns Panel. Most families are held at Cedar's pre-departure accommodation, but in exceptional circumstances the panel may advise they are held at Tinsley House Immigration Removal Centre, for example where there are particular safeguarding concerns. Length of stay is restricted to 72 hours, or with a Minister's authority up to one week.
	There have been no instances of children having been held separately from their parents at either facility in the last 12 months, nor at Yarl's Wood Immigration Removal Centre which we closed to families with children in December 2010.

Forgery

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  how many people have been (a) arrested and (b) charged in connection with the counterfeiting of bank notes and coins in each year since 1997;
	(2)  how many people have been arrested on suspicion of passport forgery in each year since 1997.

Damian Green: The information requested on arrests is not available.
	The arrests collection held by the Home Office covers arrests for recorded crime (notifiable offences) only, broken down at a main offence group level, covering categories such as violence against the person and fraud and forgery.
	Further breakdowns of offences within these offence groups are not reported to the Home Office.

Immigration

Louise Ellman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many legacy cases were awaiting a decision in the latest period for which figures are available.

Damian Green: The agency completed its review of all cases in the legacy cohort at the end of March 2011. A total of 500,500 cases were reviewed as part of the programme and the majority (455,000) have been fully concluded.
	The UK Border Agency established the Case Assurance and Audit Unit (CAAU) to actively manage those 23,000 cases which had been reviewed but had barriers to conclusion. All these cases have been decided and communicated to the applicants.
	The CAAU has now fully concluded 1,500 of those cases. It has also issued around 3,000 grants which are subject to information from the applicant in order to complete a final security check.
	The UK Border Agency is actively managing around 18,000 cases which have been considered to the furthest possible point but barriers to the person’s removal remain.
	These barriers include ongoing litigation, impending prosecution, incomplete legal or criminal proceedings, non-compliance or that people are from difficult to remove countries. These cases are being actively considered and will be concluded when those barriers have been lifted.
	Note:
	All figures rounded to the nearest 500.

Immigration Controls

Shabana Mahmood: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent assessment she has made of progress implementing the plan for creating a border policing command; and if she will make a statement.

Nick Herbert: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given on 29 June 2011, Official Report, column 863W.

Overseas Workers

Shabana Mahmood: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what representations she has received from business organisations regarding the immigration cap since 1 June 2011.

Damian Green: Business organisations were consulted fully on the development of the Government's plans for limits on migration under tiers 1 and 2 of the Points Based System, which were implemented in April 2011, as well as being involved in the more recent consultation on settlement and tier 5. The UK Border Agency maintains an active dialogue with business organisations on issues arising from the implementation of limits on migration and other issues through, for example, its Employer Taskforce, on which business organisations, including the Confederation of British Industry, the British Hospitality Association and the Recruitment and Employment Confederation, are represented.

Passports

Shabana Mahmood: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment she has made of the effects on passport processing times of the reduction in size of the interview office network.

Damian Green: The reduction in the size of the interview office network has meant that capacity is now appropriate to the level of demand. This will have no impact on processing times.

Prescriptions

David Mowat: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the answer of 14 September 2011, Official Report, column 1180, on prescriptions, when she expects to lay before the House the statutory instrument relating to the prescribing powers of non-medical prescribers.

James Brokenshire: This Government are committed to enabling the NHS to deliver services more flexibly and efficiently. The necessary work is currently being finalised for the consideration of the Minister for Crime Prevention and Antisocial Behaviour Reduction, my noble Friend, Lord Henley, with a view to laying the statutory instrument by the end of October 2011. The statutory instrument will incorporate other amendments to the Misuse of Drugs Regulations 2001 (as amended) to facilitate the non-medical prescribing and mixing of medicines in palliative care and in other areas of clinical practice as they relate to controlled drugs.

Metals: Thefts

Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  what discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills on legislation governing the sale of scrap metal;
	(2)  what recent discussions she has had with the police on metal theft;
	(3)  what discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government on metal theft from local authorities.

James Brokenshire: Home Office Ministers have had a number of discussions with Ministers from other Departments to consider a range of options to tackle metal theft, including whether any legislative changes are needed to the Scrap Metal Dealers Act 1964.

Metals: Thefts

Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent representations she has received on metal theft from (a) individuals, (b) businesses, (c) local authorities and (d) the police.

James Brokenshire: The Home Office regularly receives representations on metal theft from a broad range of interested parties.

Metals: Thefts

Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate she has made of the number of metal thefts from (a) individuals, (b) businesses and (c) local authorities in each of the last 12 months; and if she will make a statement.

James Brokenshire: Metal theft is not recorded separately in police recorded crime data and so there is no robust measure for the total number of metal theft offences in the last year. However, initial estimates based on data collected by British Transport Police, local police forces and centrally collected police recorded crime data indicate that there may have been between 80,000 and 100,000 metal theft offences in England and Wales in 2010-11. This estimate cannot be broken down by month or type of victim.

Metals: Thefts

Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment she has made of the adequacy of legislation governing the sale of scrap metal.

James Brokenshire: The Government are considering a range of options to tackle metal theft, including whether legislative changes are needed to the Scrap Metal Dealers Act 1964.

Metals: Thefts

Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment she has made of the likely effect on the level of metal theft of prohibiting cash payments for scrap metal.

James Brokenshire: The Government are considering a range of options to tackle metal theft including whether legislative changes are needed to the Scrap Metal Dealers Act 1964. One option is to prohibit cash payments within the scrap metal industry.

European Directive

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when she plans to publish the outcome of the consultation on the transposition into UK law of European Directive 2010/63/EU.

Lynne Featherstone: We are now analysing the responses to the public consultation on the options for transposition of European Directive 2010/63/EU on the protection of animals used for scientific purposes and will publish a summary report by the end of 2011.

Asylum: English Language

Shabana Mahmood: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if she will assess the effects of reductions in ESOL funding for asylum seekers on their prospects for employment and integration into society.

John Hayes: I have been asked to reply.
	The eligibility for asylum seekers to access funding for skills training is described in paragraphs 32 and 33 of the Skills Funding Agency 2011/12 Learner Eligibility and Contribution Rules (Version 2.1, August 2011). This can be found at:
	http://readingroom.lsc.gov.uk/SFA/LearnerEligibilityand ContributionRules_2011_12_12Aug2011__June_revision_V2.1.pdf
	From the 2011-12 academic year, where English language skills have been identified as a barrier to entering employment, full Government funding is provided for English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) qualifications delivered to unemployed people in receipt of Jobseekers' Allowance or in the Employment and Support Allowance (Work-Related Activity) Group. Further education colleges and training organisations also have local discretion to provide fully subsidised courses for people on a wider range of benefits where the training is to help them enter employment. Learners are expected to share the costs of publicly funded ESOL courses with Government where full fee remission is not applicable. The Government will no longer fund ESOL courses delivered in the workplace. This is to ensure publicly-funded training provision is focused on people whose lack of English is preventing them from finding work.
	This Department and the Department for Communities and Local Government are working in partnership to develop new forms of support for individuals who need language skills to assist with integration and community cohesion. I will announce further details in due course.
	The potential impact on adult learners participating in ESOL courses of the changes to eligibility criteria for fee remission set out in the Government's ‘Skills for Sustainable Growth' strategy (November 2010) are described in an equality impact assessment, published by this Department on 18 July 2011. This can be found at:
	http://www.bis.gov.uk/assets/biscore/further-education-skills/docs/e/11-1045-english-for-speakers-of-other-languages-equality-impact.pdf

WALES

Departmental Billing

Eilidh Whiteford: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what proportion of invoices from suppliers her Department paid within 10 days of receipt in July and August 2010.

David Jones: The Wales Office paid 99% of invoices within 10-days of receipt in July 2010; and 100% within 10-days of receipt in August 2010.

Departmental Buildings

Eilidh Whiteford: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what (a) building and (b) refurbishment projects her Department plans in (i) the current and (ii) the next financial year; and what the cost will be of each such project.

David Jones: The Wales Office has a plan of proposed work, developed in line with the most recent independent building survey, that aims to bring Gwydyr House, a grade II* listed building, up to a standard that complies with the relevant legislation and health and safety regulations.
	Each project is separately evaluated at the appropriate time to ensure value for money. Thus, the plans listed as follows are not yet firmly costed and it is possible that not all will proceed within the timescale envisaged. Current planned projects for the financial years requested are listed in the following tables.
	
		
			 (i) Current financial year 
			 Project Rationale 
			 Replacement of carpet tiles and painting of corridors and two rooms Safety risk—tiling is old, worn with many displaced and presenting a trip hazard. Painting work to make good damage caused by past re-cabling work 
			 Replace door leading onto staircase Safety reasons—require door that is fireproofed to a higher standard 
		
	
	
		
			 (ii) 2012-13 financial year 
			 Project Rationale 
			 Update of lift to become a ‘fire lift' Safety reasons—currently lift cannot be used in an evacuation; upgrade to a fire lift will enable its use in an emergency and increase evacuation routes from the building

Consultants

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what procedures her Department uses when engaging external consultants.

David Jones: The Wales Office has not appointed any external consultants; if we were to appoint any we would follow Cabinet Office guidance.

Fines

Eilidh Whiteford: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many transport-related fines her Department has settled on behalf of its staff; and at what cost in each year since 2007.

David Jones: None.

Procurement

Stewart Hosie: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what contracts of a monetary value of (a) between £100,000 and £500,000, (b) between £500,000 and £1 million and (c) over £1 million her Department and its predecessor have entered into with private suppliers in each year since 1990.

David Jones: None.

Training

Eilidh Whiteford: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many external training courses staff of her Department attended in the last 12 months; and what the cost to the public purse was of each course.

David Jones: In the financial year 2010-11, Wales Office staff attended 12 external courses and weekly Welsh lessons provided by an external provider. A breakdown of courses is listed as follows:
	
		
			 Course Cost (£) 
			 Guide to legislation from Consultation to Act 446.50 
			 Horizon—Senior Civil Servant Development 1,315.00 
			 End of the Line Rail Conference—Cardiff 65.00 
			 Understanding Bills and Legislation 395.00 
			 Intro to Public Accountability for Chief Executives 675.00 
			 Dragon NatSpk Advanced 601.31 
			 Private Office Foundation Workshop 360.00 
			 Overview of Parliament Buy one place get another free 576.00 
			 Overview of Government 0 
			 Intro Seminar for Audit Committee Members 650.00 
			 Managing Risk 2,240.00 
			 Answering Parliamentary questions 450.00 
			 Welsh Language Lessons for 15 Staff 1,320.00 
		
	
	In addition to the courses listed above, an annual payment of £4,639 was paid to the National School of Government for a core training programme including e-learning sessions.

Third Sector

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many letters she has received on funding for civil society organisations within her Department's area of responsibility in each month since 1 June 2010; and if she will make a statement.

David Jones: The Wales Office has no responsibility for funding civil sector organisations.

CABINET OFFICE

Government Departments: Procurement

Steve Rotheram: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office 
	(1)  what recent progress his Department has made in its efforts to assist small and medium-sized enterprises in competing for Government contracts;
	(2)  whether his Department has made recent progress in encouraging small and medium-sized enterprises to compete for Government contracts.

Nick Hurd: The Government have made progress in encouraging small and medium enterprises to compete for Government contracts. We have published a progress report on ‘Making Government business more accessible to SMEs’ on the Cabinet Office website at:
	www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/resource-library/government-business-smes
	The Cabinet Office aims to be an exemplar in terms of the measures put in place for all Departments. We have eliminated the use of pre-qualification questionnaires for procurements under the EU threshold of approximately £100,000; and all new contracts awarded since January 2011 are either on or being prepared to be put on Contracts Finder, the one stop shop that enables suppliers to find procurement opportunities, tender documents and contracts online, free of charge.

Government Departments: Procurement

Steve Rotheram: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what progress has been made on creating common policies and practices for small and medium-sized enterprises involved in government procurement.

Nick Hurd: The Government are taking forward a series of measures to make it easier for SMEs to compete on a level playing field for Government contracts. These can be found on the Cabinet Office website:
	www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/news/government-opens-contracts-small-business
	In particular:
	SMEs can register on the Dynamic Marketplace and provide quick quotes for low value Government contracts (below £100,000), enabling them to bid and compete at minimal cost alongside larger suppliers.
	We have introduced a shortened, simplified and standard set of core questions to be used when pre-qualification is required; this is mandated to all central Government Departments, and Baroness Eaton, Chair of the Local Government Group, has announced the intention of Local Government to adopt it.
	Contracts Finder provides a one stop shop to enable suppliers to find procurement opportunities, tender documents and contracts online, free of charge.

Public Sector

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office 
	(1)  what steps his Department has taken to encourage the development of public service mutuals in its area of responsibility; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what steps he is taking to put in place a right to provide for public sector workers to take over the running of services; and if he will make a statement.

Nick Hurd: The Cabinet Office is taking forward the Government's commitments to give public sector workers new rights to spin out to form new enterprises and continue to deliver public services, including through new mutuals and cooperatives. These rights will not be uniform across organisations.
	The transformation of My Civil Service Pension is currently under way. On 5 July 2011 we created the company and we are currently in the process of identifying a private sector partner for My Civil Service Pension. As this process is under way at the moment it would be inappropriate to make any further statement at this time.
	The Mutuals Support Programme is a fund of more than £10 million, administered by the Cabinet Office. It will be dedicated to supporting some of the most promising and innovative mutuals so that they reach the point of investment readiness. This will be supported by the Mutuals Information Service that will give help and guidance to potential and existing mutuals. These will be launched later in the autumn.

DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER

Constituencies

Nick Brown: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what assessment he has made of the cumulative impact of five-yearly boundary redistributions on individual voter registration in different parts of the country.

Mark Harper: I am not aware of any evidence that the frequency of constituency redistributions has any impact on the means or outcomes of various systems of electoral registration. However, changes in the register arising from the movement of people over time do increase inequalities in the weight of a vote between constituencies. Holding reviews more frequently will reduce inequalities arising as a result of population movement, and will help ensure votes have more equal weight than at present.

Electoral Register

Chris Ruane: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what estimate he has made of the potential effects of individual voter registration on the number of people registered to vote in each social category.

Mark Harper: The Government are funding research to understand the current state of the electoral register including any variation by demographic group which will help us to better understand the way in which the move to individual registration will have an impact. Further research will be conducted with currently under-registered groups in order to ensure that as many people as possible are registered to vote, and to assist the transition to Individual Electoral Registration.
	The Government will do everything it can to maintain the completeness of the electoral register. This includes phasing in the move to Individual Registration over two years so that people on the register who do not apply under the new system do not lose their vote at the 2015 general election. Every eligible elector will be asked in 2014 to register under the new system: this will include personal invites to people on the register, enquiries to households where no one is registered or people have moved, reminder letters and face to face doorstep canvassers. There will also be a publicity campaign run by the Electoral Commission and we are testing data matching to identify people missing from the register and looking at how we can increase the choices people have over how to register—including greater use of online registration.

Electoral Register

Chris Ruane: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what the timetable is for proposed changes to electoral registration in respect of the (a) 2015 general election and (b) boundary review.

Mark Harper: The White Paper published on 30 June 2011 outlined the Government plans to implement Individual Electoral Registration.
	The first Individual Electoral Registration canvass will take place in 2014, which will include a personal invite to electors on the register to apply under the new system, a household canvass of those properties where no one is registered or where there is evidence that an elector has moved, along with reminders and door-to-door canvassing for those who do not return their forms. Most existing electors on the register who do not register under the new system in 2014 will be carried forward for one year enabling them to vote in the 2015 general election.
	After the general election there will be a further annual canvass, which will target any ‘carried forward' electors and reminders and doorstep canvassing for those who have not returned their forms. Only after the conclusion of these canvasses will those individuals who have not registered under the new system be removed from the electoral register.
	The boundary review which is due to report in October 2018 will be conducted by reference to the electoral register due to be published by 1 December 2015.

Electoral Register: Rhyl

Chris Ruane: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will make an assessment of the improvement in registration rates in the West Ward of Rhyl.

Mark Harper: There are no plans to carry out such an assessment. However, as part of the move to Individual Electoral Registration, the Government are reviewing existing research data and funding further research into the completeness and accuracy of the electoral register, including the characteristics of those groups most likely to be missing from it in order to ensure that as many people as possible are registered to vote, and to assist the transition to Individual Electoral Registration.

HEALTH

HIV

Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what measures he is taking to tackle HIV nationally.

Anne Milton: The United Kingdom has a relatively low prevalence of HIV. Men who have sex with men and people from Black African communities remain the groups most at risk of HIV. The Department invests nearly £3 million in national HIV prevention programmes for these groups which complement local HIV prevention by the national health service and others.

IVF

Ann Coffey: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent representations he has received on the availability of IVF treatment through the NHS.

Anne Milton: I am meeting the right hon. Member for Bristol South (Dawn Primarolo) together with the National Infertility Awareness Campaign tomorrow to discuss national health service infertility services.
	I have also recently received an update report from Infertility Network UK about their Primary Care Trusts Liaison Project that the Department sponsors, which I am currently considering.

Cancer Genomes

Stephen Phillips: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what support his Department is giving to projects to sequence cancer genomes.

Andrew Lansley: The United Kingdom is among the world leaders in genomics research. The Department and National Institute for Health Research work with Cancer Research UK to fund Experimental Cancer Medicine Centres and support the Cancer Stratified Medicine Programme to improve genetic tests for cancer.
	As part of the Cancer Outcomes Strategy, the Department will develop a commissioning and funding structure to enable the efficient delivery of high quality molecular diagnostic testing through centres of excellence.

Health and Wellbeing Boards

Daniel Poulter: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps his Department is taking to ensure that Health and Wellbeing Boards will be accountable to local communities.

Paul Burstow: Health and Wellbeing Boards would be accountable to local people through elected councillors. Engagement with local communities would be critical to the boards' work and they would have a duty to involve local people in preparing joint strategic needs assessments and joint health and well-being strategies.

Obesity

Caroline Nokes: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to tackle obesity.

Neil Parish: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to tackle obesity.

Anne Milton: The Government have published ‘A call to action on obesity in England’. This sets out how obesity will be tackled in the new public health and national health service systems, and the role of key partners.
	The Government are working with key partners to help and support people to make healthier choices.

Pancreatic Cancer

Jeremy Lefroy: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent assessment he has made of the survival rate for pancreatic cancer in the UK compared with other developed nations; and if he will make a statement.

Paul Burstow: Research shows that if England's pancreatic cancer survival rates matched the best in Europe we would save 75 additional lives each year. Our cancer outcomes strategy sets out a range of actions to improve survival rates for all cancers, including pancreatic cancer.

Mental Health

Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent assessment he has made of the therapeutic value of acute in-patient beds as a component of NHS mental health care; and if he will make a statement.

Paul Burstow: Improving acute mental health services is a priority in our mental health strategy. National health service patient and staff groups are working to ensure that in-patients receive high quality, safe care in an appropriate environment with a particular focus on recovery and integrating people back into their everyday lives.

Health Inequalities

David Evennett: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has to reduce health inequalities; and if he will make a statement.

Anne Milton: The Health and Social Care Bill proposes the first ever legal duty on the Secretary of State for Health to have regard to the need to reduce health inequalities, covering national health service and public health functions. We are also addressing the health needs of the most vulnerable people through the Inclusion Health programme.

Abortion: Counselling

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he expects to bring forward draft regulations on abortion counselling; which organisations he plans to consult on such regulations; and if he will make a statement. [R]

Anne Milton: Details of proposals on independent abortion counselling are currently being developed and will be subject to a wide public consultation.

Carers

Stephen Barclay: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 21 June 2011, Official Report, column 251W, on carers, what the outcomes were of the Standing Commission on Carers' visit to Cambridgeshire in July; and whether he has considered the merits of establishing a National Carers' Partnership Board to facilitate discussion with and highlight the needs of carers.

Paul Burstow: The Standing Commission on Carers on its visit to Cambridgeshire noted the good joint working between the council, the local national health service and voluntary organisations, who have developed some highly innovative initiatives that both identify and provide services for carers. The Cambridgeshire Partnership Board is a good example of local partnership working.
	We have no plans to establish a National Carers Partnership Board. The Carers Strategy Cross Government Board and the Standing Commission on Carers fulfil these functions. We already have good partnership working across government and with delivery partners to take forward the carers strategy.

Cataracts: Health Services

Frank Dobson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many patients have been refused cataract treatment since the changes to eligibility criteria.

Simon Burns: The Department does not set eligibility criteria for cataract surgery. Primary care trusts (PCTs) are responsible for commissioning services, taking into account the available evidence and the needs of the local population. PCTs are required to make decisions on the funding of drugs and treatments rationally, and following proper consideration of the evidence. If a PCT decides to prioritise funding for alternative drugs or treatments, it should be able to explain its decision and rationale. We have been clear that this should not lead to any blanket bans on procedures, and local processes should ensure eligibility criteria for procedures can take account of individuals' healthcare circumstances.

Cystic Fibrosis: Health Services

Debbie Abrahams: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the effect of NHS efficiency savings on services for people with cystic fibrosis.

Paul Burstow: The national health service has been asked to make efficiency savings with the purpose of redirecting the money back into meeting the additional demands for frontline care the NHS will face. We are clear that this does not mean reducing quality of care or the outcomes the NHS achieves; but doing things better including working together more closely with social care.
	One of the potential areas identified for the NHS to achieve this is for patients with long term conditions. A national workstream has been set up to support them to achieve this, and it is centred on a generic model of care based on key principles of risk-profiling, neighbourhood care teams and self care/shared decision making. Teams based within local health economies participating in this workstream are applying these principles in line with local need.
	By embedding these key principles in local health economies across the country this workstream aims to support the NHS to significantly reduce the number of unscheduled admissions and length of stay for people with LTCs. This will represent improved care and generate efficiency savings.

Management Consultants

Frank Dobson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much his Department has spent on management consultants in each of the last five years.

Simon Burns: The figures for expenditure on external management consultants for the core Department of Health for the last five financial years are as follows:
	
		
			  £ million 
			 2006-07 205 
			 2007-08 132 
			 2008-09 102 
			 2009-10 108 
			 2010-11 9.8

Departmental Manpower

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many (a) full- and (b) part-time staff his Department employed in each year since 1997.

Simon Burns: The numbers of both full-time and part-time staff employed by the Department in years 1997 to 2010 are published on the Civil Service Statistics website.
	These can be found at:
	http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20110426084705/http://www.civilservice.gov.uk/about/resources/stats-archive/archived-reports.aspx
	The equivalent information at 31 March 2011 can be found at:
	www.ons.gov.uk/ons/publications/re-reference-tables.html?edition=tcm%3A77-229310

Sick Leave

Mike Freer: To ask the Secretary of State for Health for how many days on average his Department's staff in each pay grade were absent from work as a result of ill health in 2010-11.

Simon Burns: The averages of the number of days that the Department's staff, in each pay grade, were absent from work as a result of ill health for the period from 1 April 2010 to 31 March 2011 are given in the following table.
	
		
			 Grade Total working days lost in 2010-11 Average working days lost per staff year for 2010-11 
			 Assistant Officer 1,139 9.8 
			 Executive Officer 3,204 7.3 
			 Higher Executive Officer 1,663 4.5 
			 Senior Executive Officer 2,519 4.9 
			 Grade 7 1,761 3.2 
			 Grade 6 1,226 3.6 
			 Senior Civil Servant 619 2.4 
			 Overall 12,130 4.7

Dystonia: Health Services

Justin Tomlinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what plans his Department has to provide for the treatment of dystonia using deep brain stimulation;
	(2)  what plans his Department has to work with dystonia patient groups to provide internet material that is safe and credible in order to reduce misdiagnosis.

Paul Burstow: The Department has already made available detailed information, on the NHS Choices and the NHS Evidence websites, covering the diagnosis, symptoms and treatment options for this condition.
	Deep brain stimulation is available for the treatment of dystonia. Health professionals are able to refer suitable patients for this treatment who meet the criteria detailed in the guidelines issued by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence.

General Practitioners: Kent

Gareth Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many GPs there were per head of the population in each primary care trust serving (a) Kent and (b) Dartford constituency in each of the last five years.

Simon Burns: The information is shown in the following table.
	
		
			 General practitioners (GPs) per head of population by selected organisations as at 2006-10 
			  GP headcount per 100,000 population 
			  2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 
			 Medway primary care trust (PCT) 52.9 51.6 53.7 65.2 64.7 
			 Eastern and Coastal Kent PCT 59.6 60.6 63.2 65.4 65.2 
		
	
	
		
			 West Kent PCT 58.0 57.5 58.3 60.7 60.6 
			 Notes: 1. Data as at 30 September for each year. 2. All GP figures are GPs (excluding retainers and registrars). 3. The PCT relating to the Dartford constituency is West Kent PCT. 4. GP headcount figures are published as ‘per 100,000 population'. 5. GPs per head of population have been calculated using ONS resident population estimates as at May 2010, adjusting previously published data. 6. The new headcount methodology for 2010 data is not fully comparable with previous years' data due to improvements that make it a more stringent count of absolute staff numbers. Further information on the headcount methodology is available in the Census publication. Headcount totals are unlikely to equal the sum of components. 7. Data Quality: The NHS Information Centre for health and social care seeks to minimise inaccuracies and the effect of missing and invalid data but responsibility for data accuracy lies with the organisations providing the data. Methods are continually being updated to improve data quality where changes impact on figures already published. This is assessed but unless it is significant at national level figures are not changed. Impact at detailed or local level is footnoted in relevant analyses. Source: The NHS Information Centre for health and social care: General and Personal Medical Services Statistics; Office for National Statistics, 2006-2009 Final Mid-Year Population Estimates (2001 census based), adjusted May 2010 to reflect revisions to migration methodology.

Genito-urinary Medicine

Diane Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether he plans to retain the 48 hour access target for genito-urinary medicine clinics; and if he will make a statement.

Anne Milton: There is currently no performance measure on access to a genito-urinary medicine (GUM) clinic in 2011-12.
	An existing commitment to deliver the 48 hour access to a GUM clinic indicator was in place in 2010-11.
	There has been no decline in performance in this area in the early months of 2011-12. The latest data for June 2011 show that 99.9% of patients were offered an appointment within 48 hours. We are currently developing a new sexual health policy framework which will recognise the continuing importance of rapid access to GUM services.

Health Professions: Languages

David Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he has taken to ensure staff in the NHS have the necessary language skills to perform their duties.

Anne Milton: The Department of Health in England has made it clear to all national health service employers that they should ensure that those they appoint have suitable skills and competence for the role, including the ability to communicate, and clear guidance has been provided on this issue. Primary care trusts also have a legal obligation to satisfy themselves that persons admitted to their performers lists have appropriate English language ability to provide primary care services.
	Steps have already been taken to strengthen the current system and as of 1 January 2011 all designated bodies must nominate or appoint a responsible officer with duties to check the qualifications and experience of doctors and to ensure that references are obtained and checked.
	We are continuing to work with the General Medical Council and we propose a stronger role for responsible officers which will build on their existing duties.
	We are also working with other regulatory bodies, to explore what scope there is for strengthening local checks on other health professions.

Hospitals: Data Protection

John Hemming: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what information his Department holds on the number of non-disclosure clauses signed by doctors in each (a) London and (b) other hospital; and what information his Department holds on the reasons for the clause in each case.

Simon Burns: The Department does not hold this information. Each national health service employer would hold information in relation to the use of non-disclosure clauses for its own employees including doctors.

Hospitals: Data Protection

John Hemming: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to ensure that NHS hospital trusts abide by his Department's guidance on the use of confidentiality clauses in compromise agreements.

Simon Burns: The Department does not routinely monitor the use of confidentiality clauses in compromise agreements. The Department's guidance, contained within the health circular HSC 2004/001, does not prevent the use of confidentiality clauses per se. However, it does state that national health service employers must consider with their legal advisers whether such a clause is necessary in the circumstances of each case and that if such a clause is included within a particular agreement that it complies with their various statutory obligations regarding the treatment of confidential information, including the Public Interest Disclosure Act 1998.
	Before an employee considers signing a compromise agreement, which may or may not contain a confidentiality clause, the employer is required to pay for the employee to have independent legal advice on the terms of the agreement.

Hospitals: Food

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps the NHS is taking to reduce food waste through flexible portion sizes; and if he will make a statement.

Simon Burns: Guidance on reducing food waste in the national health service was published by the (then) NHS Estates Agency in 2005.
	The guidance, available on the Hospital Caterers Association website at:
	www.hospitalcaterers.org/better-hospital-food
	provides an audit tool to support local managers in identifying how and why food wastage occurs. It includes a number of specific references to the importance of portion size in ensuring that waste is kept to a minimum.

Influenza: Vaccination

Diane Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what measures he plans to take to encourage patients to have an influenza vaccination in 2011; and whether an influenza awareness campaign will take place during the 2011-12 winter.

Anne Milton: The Department published the Seasonal Flu Plan on 25 May, to assist local national health service organisations in developing robust and flexible operational plans for the 2011-12 flu season.
	The chief medical officer (CMO) wrote to the NHS on 14 March seeking assurance that primary care trusts (PCTs) have adequate local plans in place for the flu immunisation programme, have ordered sufficient vaccine and will use robust call and reminder systems to contact their eligible patients, including carers. The letter stated the need for the NHS to plan locally to reach or exceed the 75% uptake for people under 65 in at-risk groups.
	The CMO wrote to the NHS again on 25 May outlining arrangements for the 2011 flu vaccination season, specifying the risk groups and the staff groups that should be vaccinated.
	Copies of both letters have already been placed in the Library.
	Most PCTs run localised activity with their general practitioners (GPs) to ensure that eligible patients are called up for their annual vaccination. The Department supports local activity through information provision and targeted messaging. The Department has produced an information leaflet in PDF format for the public, NHS organisations and GP practices to download for local patient information and will run reminder messages on pharmacy bags to encourage people in at-risk groups to be vaccinated against seasonal flu.
	Messages will appear on pharmacy bags across 2,225 pharmacies in England and run for four weeks from 24 October until 20 November. Pharmacy bags will support local campaigns as they target people in at-risk groups in a relevant setting, i.e. when they are collecting their prescription from their pharmacy.
	Additionally, the Department is working with relevant partner organisations, such as charities working for people with long-term conditions, to communicate seasonal flu messages via their channels.

Low Birthweight Babies

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the effect of maternal stress on the incidence of low birthweight babies.

Anne Milton: Lifestyle factors, including maternal stress and depression, are known to be significant factors on the incidence of low birthweight.
	Early access to antenatal care is pivotal to improving health and well-being outcomes for mother and baby by ensuring the woman receives an assessment of her health and social care needs, risks and choices so that important life style messages can be provided. The Department encourages early access to maternity services and has included the maternity 12-week early access indicator as one of the measures for quality in the ‘NHS Operating Framework for 2011-12’.

Lung Diseases: Research

Nicholas Dakin: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what discussions his Department has had on research funding for interstitial lung diseases with (a) the British Lung Foundation, (b) the Epidemiology and Public Health Department of Nottingham City Hospital and (c) the Royal College of Physicians.

Paul Burstow: The Department has had no discussions specifically on research funding for interstitial lung diseases with the British Lung Foundation (BLF), the Division of Epidemiology and Public Health at the University of Nottingham (City Hospital Campus), or the Royal College of Physicians. The Department's National Institute for Health Research is currently working with the BLF on building capacity for research into asbestos-related diseases.

Maternity Services

Diane Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has to increase the support that women who experience miscarriages receive from the NHS; what measures he will take to improve training for healthcare staff to help them be more supportive; and what plans he has to provide faster access to pre-natal scanning.

Anne Milton: Miscarriage can be a devastating event for women and their partners and it is important that they receive evidence-based care, in appropriate locations, which supports both their physical health needs and emotional wellbeing.
	The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, “Standards for Gynaecology, and Standards for Maternity (2008)” set out clear standards for the level of care that should be provided to help women and their partners experiencing early pregnancy loss. This includes prompt access to a dedicated early pregnancy assessment unit that provides investigation including scanning, patient counselling and access to appropriate information.
	The Department has also commissioned the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence to produce a clinical guideline for the NHS on the assessment and initial management, both physical and emotional, of pain and bleeding in the first trimester of pregnancy. The guideline is due to be published in November 2011.

Meningitis: Health Services

Justin Tomlinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what steps his Department is taking to improve the (a) treatment and (b) aftercare of individuals diagnosed with meningitis;
	(2)  what steps he is taking to increase early recognition of meningitis.

Simon Burns: The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence has issued guidance for general practitioners and other clinicians on the diagnosis and management of bacterial meningitis. Guidance is also available from the Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network, the Health Protection Agency, and other sources commonly used by primary care clinicians such as ‘Patient UK’. In addition, there is information on the NHS Choices website and from organisations such as the Meningitis Trust to help parents and carers identify the early signs of meningitis and seek prompt medical attention.

Midwives: Manpower

Diane Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many midwives are employed by the NHS; and whether he has plans to increase the number of midwives.

Anne Milton: There are near record numbers of midwives in the national health service in England—20,654 full-time equivalents in June 2011. A rise of 522 (2.6%) since May 2010.
	The Department is committed to training the right number of midwives, based on the most up-to-date evidence. That is why we have asked the Centre for Workforce Intelligence to undertake an in-depth study of the nursing and maternity workforce during 2011-12 in order to inform the future commissioning of training places. This study will help inform our plans for the future.
	It is the responsibility of local NHS organisations to plan and deliver a workforce appropriate to the needs of their local population, based on clinical need and sound evidence.

Musculoskeletal Disorders

Graham Allen: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether he plans to introduce a national strategy for musculoskeletal diseases; and if he will make a statement.

Paul Burstow: No decision has yet been taken. We will make a further announcement in due course.

NHS Foundation Trusts: Regulation

Jackie Doyle-Price: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the responsibilities are of the Care Quality Commission and Monitor in respect of the regulation of foundation trusts; and if he will make a statement.

Simon Burns: The Care Quality Commission (CQC), as the independent regulator of health and adult social care in England, has a key responsibility in the overall assurance of essential levels of safety and quality of health and adult social care services. Under legislation, all providers including national health service foundation trusts (NHSFTs), NHS trusts and independent sector providers, must register with the CQC and meet a set of essential requirements of safety and quality. The CQC has a wide range of enforcement powers that it can use if a provider fails to comply.
	Monitor (the statutory name of which is the Independent Regulator of NHS Foundation Trusts) regulates NHS foundation trusts making sure they are well-run on behalf of patients and taxpayers. NHSFTs must comply with their terms of authorisation which are detailed requirements covering how they must operate, including the requirement to operate effectively, efficiently and economically. Regulation identifies actual and potential financial and governance issues. In cases where a NHSFT has breached or is at risk of breaching its terms of authorisation, Monitor will work with the trust leadership so that problems can be rectified. Where an NHSFT fails to do this, Monitor can exercise its formal powers of intervention.
	Both regulators are under a duty to cooperate in undertaking their respective functions, and have agreed a memorandum of understanding to underpin that duty.

NHS: Debts

Phillip Lee: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to reduce NHS hospital indebtedness.

Andrew Lansley: The national health service is forecasting a healthy surplus for 2011-12. However, the last Government left a legacy of up to six hospital trusts whose private finance initiative payments are a risk to their financial sustainability and up to 24 trusts having such high levels of debt following years of bailouts that they may not meet the tests for their future financial sustainability.
	We are working with all of these to identify their individual needs so we can support trusts to achieve consistent standards of quality and financial sustainability; and I will make an announcement later in the year.

NHS: Expenditure

Frank Dobson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much the NHS has spent on (a) pharmaceutical products, (b) IT equipment, (c) IT services, (d) hospital equipment and (e) management consultants in each of the last five years.

Simon Burns: The information is shown in the following table.
	
		
			 £000 
			  2009-10 2008-09 2007-08 2006-07 2005-06 
			 Pharmaceutical products(1) 10,033,033 9,870,769 9,809,508 9,815,035 9,710,696 
			 IT Equipment(2) 219,415 204,016 261,115 253,230 205,327 
			 IT Services(3) 186,760 190,066 207,703 194,276 203,080 
			 Hospital Equipment(4) 1,864,925 1,934,726 2,061,014 2,016,868 2,024,840 
		
	
	
		
			 Consultancy(5) 456,759 421,481 310,107 n/a n/a 
			 (1) Includes primary care prescribing (primary care trusts (PCTs)) and drugs used in secondary care (PCTs and national health service trusts). (2) Capital expenditure (purchased additions to non-current assets) under the "IT" heading (PCTs, strategic health authorities (SHAs) and NHS trusts). The figures do not include revenue expenditure on IT equipment, which is not separately identifiable from the financial data held. Source—NHS audited summarisation schedules. (3) Revenue expenditure on maintenance and data processing contracts (PCTs, SHAs and NHS trusts). Source—NHS financial returns. (4) Revenue expenditure on the purchase and maintenance of medical, surgical, x-ray and laboratory equipment. The figures do not include capital expenditure on hospital equipment, which is not separately identifiable from the financial data held. Source—NHS financial returns. (5) Consultancy services (PCTs, SHAs and NHS trusts). Data for consultancy services expenditure were collected for the first time in 2007-08. Source—NHS audited summarisation schedules. 
		
	
	The Department does not collect data from NHS foundation trusts. Where an NHS trust obtains foundation trust status part way through any year, the data provided are only for the part of the year the organisation operated as an NHS trust.
	Source:
	NHS audited summarisation schedules (prescribing costs) and NHS financial returns (drugs).

NHS: Information and Communications Technology

John Pugh: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what penalties the NHS has incurred through cancelling or terminating contracts within the Connecting for Health programme since April 2010.

Simon Burns: NHS Connecting for Health is the organisation charged with delivering the National Programme for Information Technology. Since April 2010, no penalties have been incurred. The Department's Informatics Division are ensuring the transition or termination of contracts to meet the future requirements of the NHS.
	As we announced in September 2010, by moving IT systems closer to the frontline, it is expected to make additional savings of £700 million.

NHS: Information and Communications Technology

John Pugh: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the net savings to the public purse arising from the termination of any contracts within the Connecting for Health programme since April 2010.

Simon Burns: NHS Connecting for Health is the organisation charged with delivering the National Programme for IT. Since April 2010, no National Programme for IT contracts have been terminated and therefore no estimate of net savings has been made.
	As we announced in September 2010, by moving IT systems closer to the frontline, it is expected to make additional savings of £700 million.

NHS: Information and Communications Technology

John Pugh: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the net saving to the NHS of the termination of planned but uncontracted future work within the Connecting for Health programme.

Simon Burns: In September 2011 the Government announced an acceleration of the dismantling of the National Programme for IT, following the conclusions of a review by the Cabinet Office's Major Projects Authority. The Department is undertaking a review of the full portfolio of its informatics applications and services and this study should conclude and report by the end of this year. Decisions on termination and estimations of net savings of planned but uncontracted future work will be informed by this review.
	As we announced in September 2010, by moving IT systems closer to the frontline, it is expected to make additional savings of £700 million, on top of the £600 million announced by the previous Administration in December 2009.

NHS: Land

Derek Twigg: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what recent estimate he has made of the extent of the NHS estate that will be transferred to private providers under the provisions of the Health and Social Care Bill;
	(2)  what his most recent estimate is of the monetary value of NHS land and buildings held by primary care trusts;
	(3)  what recent discussions he has had with private healthcare providers in respect of the potential use of NHS buildings or land.

Simon Burns: The Secretary of State for Health, my right hon. Friend the Member for South Cambridgeshire (Mr Lansley), has not had recent discussions with any private health care providers in respect of the potential use of national health service buildings or land.
	The total net book value of land and buildings held by primary care trusts (PCTs), as at 31March 2011, was £6,634,602,000.
	This figure is taken from the NHS (England) Summarised Accounts 2010-11. It excludes the value of assets under construction.
	As the Health and Social Care Bill provides that all strategic health authorities (SHAs) and PCTs will be abolished on 1 April 2013, it also permits transfers of property and staff to an appropriate body listed in the Bill. The Bill also enables property transfer schemes to create additional rights or impose liabilities, which could, for example, be used to ensure that any property being transferred is required to be used for the delivery of NHS services.
	There are no plans centrally to sell NHS property or related assets to non-NHS organisations.

NHS: Standards

Graeme Morrice: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the savings to the public purse arising from the implementation of the Quality, Innovation, Productivity and Prevention programme.

Simon Burns: The spending review set out the Government's commitment to delivering efficiency improvements in health spending of up to £20 billion over the next four years (from 2011-12 through 2014-15). This commitment still stands.
	As set out in “The Operating Framework for the NHS in England 2011-12”, at a regional and local level, strategic health authorities have developed integrated plans that address the overall improvements envisaged over the term of the spending review in terms of quality, productivity, management of resources and capacity for building the new system. In addition to actions taken by the national health service regionally and locally, the Department has also taken action to deliver savings from centrally-held budgets and to reduce the costs of administration across the health system, including the Department and its arms length bodies, by one third by 2014-15. In total, national, regional and local plans have identified recurrent potential savings of £18.9 billion by 2014-15.

NHS: Standards

Graeme Morrice: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to protect frontline NHS services following implementation of the Quality, Innovation, Productivity and Prevention programme.

Simon Burns: The Government have protected the national health service in the spending review settlement in England, with cash funding growth of £12.5 billion by 2014-15. By comparison with other Departments, this is a generous settlement, though by NHS historical standards still extremely challenging. Over the next spending period (2011-12 to 2014-15) the NHS will face significant additional demand for services arising from the age and lifestyle of the population as well as the need to fund new technologies and drugs.
	In order to meet this challenge, the NHS needs to improve the quality of care it delivers while also making up to £20 billion of recurrent efficiency savings. The NHS has been developing proposals to meet this challenge, widely known as Quality, Innovation, Productivity and Prevention (QIPP), which include demonstrating how action tailored to local needs and circumstances will ensure quality is maintained or improved while improving productivity.
	The delivery of QIPP will help the NHS to maximise resources for frontline services and ensure that where changes to front line services are proposed, those changes will improve or protect the quality of care patients receive.

Nutrition

Diane Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what process his Department followed in considering the scientific evidence relating to the calorie reduction pledge of the responsibility deal; if he will ensure that the responsibility deal is based on the findings of peer-reviewed scientific literature; and if he will make a statement.

Simon Burns: The scientific evidence was considered by an independent expert group of nutrition scientists who: (i) examined the evidence on the daily energy imbalance gap; (ii) estimated the level by which calorie intakes would need to fall to reduce the risk of continued excessive weight gain among the population and lead to a degree of weight loss; and (iii) assessed the risk this poses to micronutrient status and malnutrition among different population groups. The group's findings were published on the Department's website in April 2011 and have informed the development of the calorie reduction challenge set out in “Healthy lives, healthy people, a call to action on obesity in England”, published on 13 October 2011.
	The report of the expert group can be found at:
	www.dh.gov.uk/en/Publicationsandstatistics/Publications/PublicationsPolicyAndGuidance/DH_127553

Palliative Care

Julian Huppert: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what system is used to record decisions taken in advance about end-of-life care;
	(2)  what systems are used in the NHS to record patient preference documents including end-of-life care preferences;
	(3)  what evidence his Department has collected on the degree of medical adherence to decisions taken in advance about end-of-life care.

Paul Burstow: The Department does not hold information about the use of advance decisions to refuse treatment as set out in the Mental Capacity Act 2005.
	There are a number of systems available, including the preferred priorities for care (PPC), which enable patients to record their preferences for care at the end of life and the choices they would like to make, including saying where, if possible, they would want to be when they die.
	The Department has recently completed a series of pilots for electronic palliative care coordination systems (locality registers), which have the potential to improve communication, coordination, planning and delivery of end of life care, ensuring that a person's wishes and expressed preferences for care are taken into account. The national health service is beginning to adopt these systems. The core dataset tested by the pilots included information about advance decisions.

Pregnancy

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what estimate he has made of the number of unwanted pregnancies which remained unwanted by the mother at the time of birth of the baby in the latest period for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement; [R]
	(2)  what research his Department has (a) undertaken and (b) plans to undertake into the number of pregnancies being unwanted by the mother and the number of unwanted pregnancies subsequently becoming wanted; and if he will make a statement. [R]

Anne Milton: No estimate has been made of the number of unwanted pregnancies that remain unwanted at the time of birth and the Department has not commissioned specific research into the number of pregnancies being unwanted by the mother and the number of unwanted pregnancies subsequently being wanted. The Department has funded a review of Induced Abortion and Mental Health through the Academy of Royal Medical Colleges, which is examining whether mental health problems are more common in women who have an induced abortion, when compared with women who deliver an unwanted pregnancy. The review will be published shortly.

Public Sector

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to put in place a right to provide for public sector workers to take over the running of services; and if he will make a statement.

Simon Burns: The Secretary of State for Health, my right hon. Friend the Member for South Cambridgeshire (Mr Lansley), announced a right to provide for national health service and social care in March 2011. It enables NHS and social care staff to develop proposals to deliver services through a staff-led enterprise, which includes social enterprises, joint ventures and staff-led mutuals.

Public Sector

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps his Department has taken to encourage the development of public service mutuals in its area of responsibility; and if he will make a statement.

Simon Burns: The Government have supported the right to request, which has enabled 45 staff-led social enterprises to be established. This policy has supported approximately 25,000 staff to move out of the national health service into social enterprises with contracts worth roughly £900 million. NHS staff have been assisted by a wide ranging programme of support from the Department.

Responsibility Deals

Diane Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has made for the long-term future of responsibility deals.

Anne Milton: The public health responsibility deal continues to work in partnership with non-government organisations, businesses, professionals, and other organisations to improve public health and tackle health inequalities, recognising their ability to influence what we eat and drink, how active we are and workplace health.
	The collective and individual pledges all make a positive contribution to public health. To date, over 300 organisations have signed up as partners to the responsibility deal and we will continue to promote this approach.

Royal Shrewsbury Hospital: Princess Royal Hospital Telford

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what weighting is given to submissions made to the consultation on the re-configuration of services between the Royal Shrewsbury Hospital and the Princess Royal Hospital, Telford by medical consultants currently associated with both hospitals.

Simon Burns: The reconfiguration of services is a matter for local decision. Queries about the local process, including weighting of consultation contributions, should be directed to the Shropshire county primary care trust and NHS Telford and Wrekin.
	The Government have pledged that, in future, all service changes must be led by clinicians and patients, not be driven from the top down. To this end, we have outlined new, strengthened criteria that we expect decisions on NHS service changes to meet. They must focus on improving patient outcomes, consider patient choice, have support from general practitioner commissioners and be based on sound clinical evidence.

Sexually Transmitted Infections

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  how many (a) males and (b) females aged (i) 10, (ii) 11, (iii) 12, (iv) 13, (v) 14, (vi) 15, (vii) 16, (viii) 17, (ix) 18, (x) 19, (xi) 20 and (xii) 21 were diagnosed with each type of sexually-transmitted disease in each health authority area in each year since 1999; [R]
	(2)  what the incidence of each sexually-transmitted disease was in (a) males and (b) females aged (i) 10, (ii) 11, (iii) 12, (iv) 13, (v) 14, (vi) 15, (vii) 16, (viii) 17, (ix) 18, (x) 19, (xi) 20 and (xii) 21 in each health authority area in each year since 1999. [R]

Anne Milton: The data requested, which are only available by single year of age for 2009 and 2010, are shown in the following tables. These data include information provided by the National Chlamydia Screening Programme (NCSP) and by genito-urinary medicine (GUM) clinics. These data have been provided at national level only because of the risk of disclosure. For earlier years, only aggregated data by age group are available from GUM clinics. These data are provided at strategic health authority and national level for 1999 to 2008 and have been placed in the Library. As many infections can be asymptomatic the true incidence of sexually transmitted infections is difficult to measure.
	
		
			 Table 1: Sexually transmitted infection (STI) diagnoses reported in patients under 18 years of age in England, 2009 (1, 2, 3,) () (4) 
			   Age (in years) 
			 Diagnosis Gender <13 13 14 15 16 17 Total 
			 Chlamydia Male 8 15 77 378 1,376 3,098 4,952 
			  Female 16 118 747 2,916 6,976 10,358 21,131 
			  Total(5) 24 133 824 3,302 8,377 13,486 26,146 
			          
			 Gonorrhoea Male 0 * * * 110 201 339 
			  Female * * * * 318 444 926 
			  Total(5) * * * 143 429 647 1,268 
		
	
	
		
			 Genital herpes Male 0 0 * * 44 99 154 
			  Female * 7 * * 402 642 1,262 
			  Total(5) * * * 172 446 741 1,416 
			          
			 Genital warts Male * * 5 37 203 630 894 
			  Female * * 115 467 1,282 2,458 4,364 
			  Total(5) 40 21 120 504 1,487 3,091 5,263 
			          
			 Other acute STIs(6) Male * * 32 159 450 1,199 1,852 
			  Female * * 87 310 690 1,191 2,296 
			  Total(5) 11 19 119 469 1,140 2,393 4,151 
			          
			 Total Male 31 24 119 607 2,183 5,227 8,191 
			  Female 48 164 1,031 3,975 9,668 15,093 29,979 
			  Total(5) 79 188 1,150 4,590 11,879 20,358 38,244 
		
	
	
		
			 Table 2: STI diagnoses reported in patients under 18 years of age in England, 2010 (1, 2, 3, 4) 
			   Age (in years) 
			 Diagnosis Gender <13 13 14 15 16 17 Total 
			 Chlamydia Male 11 13 78 424 1,471 3,270 5,267 
			  Female 10 109 782 2,919 6,999 9,895 20,714 
			  Total(5) 21 122 862 3,352 8,486 13,190 26,033 
			          
			 Gonorrhoea Male 0 * * * 86 187 294 
			  Female 0 * * * 272 389 820 
			  Total(5) 0 9 35 136 358 577 1,115 
			          
			 Genital herpes Male * 0 * * 36 104 154 
			  Female * * * * 391 625 1,227 
			  Total(5) * * 40 177 427 729 1,381 
			          
			 Genital warts Male * * 7 49 176 533 784 
			  Female * * 85 436 1,099 2,075 3,729 
			  Total(5) 40 13 92 485 1,275 2,611 4,516 
			          
			 Other acute STIs(6) Male * * 26 99 420 982 1,534 
			  Female * * 89 295 670 1,169 2,239 
			  Total(5) * * 115 394 1,090 2,151 3,773 
			          
			 Total Male 32 20 114 602 2,189 5,076 8,033 
			  Female 39 145 1,028 3,933 9,431 14,153 28,729 
			  Total(5) 71 165 1,144 4,544 11,636 19,258 36,818 
			 (1) Sources—National Chlamydia Screening Programme (NCSP) and Genitourinary Medicine Clinic Activity Data-set (GUMCAD) returns to the Health Protection Agency (HPA). (2) Data from infants (age 0) were excluded as these were most probably due to mother to child transmission. (3) Data with incorrect year of birth and data entry errors may also have been included. (4) Small cell values between 1 and 4 have been anonymised (with an asterix *) to prevent deductive disclosure. Where the anonymised cell can be deduced from the total it has been necessary to anonymise additional data from the same row/column. (5) Data total may include ‘not known’ gender. (6) Data for ‘other acute STIs' include chancroid, lymphogranuloma venerum, molluscum contagiosum(7), non-specific genital infection, pediculus pubis(7), scabies(7), syphilis and trichomoniasis. (7) Other acute STIs not exclusively transmitted by sexual contact. Note: Data on patients aged 15 and over by age groups and gender are available on the HPA website: www.hpa.org.uk/stiannualdatatables

Sexually Transmitted Infections

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  how much the NHS spent on treatment of sexually-transmitted diseases in (a) males and (b) females in each year since 1999; [R]
	(2)  how much was spent by each health authority on treatment of sexually-transmitted diseases in (a) males and (b) females in each year since 1999. [R]

Anne Milton: The Department does not collect information on national health service expenditure on treating sexually transmitted infections broken down by sex of patients.
	However since 2003-04 the Department has collected programme budgeting estimates of primary care trust expenditure on disease categories including genito-urinary system problems and infectious diseases. Since 2006-07 information has also been collected on subcategories of these disease programmes including sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and HIV and AIDS. This information is available at England and strategic health authority level (SHA) in the following tables.
	
		
			 Programme budgeting estimated England level gross expenditure on genito urinary system problems and infectious diseases for 2003-04 to 2009-10 and sexually transmitted infections and HIV and AIDS for 2006-07 to 2009-10 
			  England level gross expenditure (£ million) 
			 Programme b udgeting subcategory 2003-04 2004-05 2005-06 2006-07 2007-08 2008-09 2009-10 
			 Genito urinary system problems 2,809.2 3,097.6 3,507.7 3,755.3 3,646.0 4,003.7 4,630.1 
			 Genito urinary system problems—Sexually transmitted infections — — — 227.2 245.0 279.5 292.5 
			 Infectious diseases 977.4 1.615.5 1,257.7 1,301.2 1,333.2 1,418.0 1,907.4 
			 Infectious diseases—HIV and AIDS — — — 497.5 542.6 654.4 762.9 
		
	
	
		
			 Programme budgeting estimated strategic health authority expenditure on genito urinary system problems for 2003-04 to 2009-10 and sexually transmitted infections for 2006-07 to 2009-10 
			  Estimated expenditure on own population (£ million) 
			  2003-04 2004-05 2005-06 2006-07 
			 Strategic health authority Genito urinary system problems Genito urinary system problems Genito urinary system problems Genito urinary system problems Sexually Transmitted Infections 
			 North East 129.3 159.1 175.1 80.2 12.6 
			 North West 403.8 450.0 488.0 169.2 23.2 
			 Yorkshire and Humber 272.5 299.6 326.6 119.5 25.9 
			 East Midlands 210.1 253.3 282.0 106.2 15.0 
			 West Midlands 279.4 322.2 372.8 126.2 18.4 
			 East of England 257.7 293.2 305.6 116.5 26.3 
			 London 514.4 556.8 593.9 162.6 45.8 
			 South East Coast 222.9 243.3 261.1 117.7 12.9 
			 South Central 187.5 222.5 241.0 102.7 18.9 
			 South West 242.6 267.5 267.4 103.1 16.1 
		
	
	
		
			  Estimated expenditure on own population (£ million) 
			  2007-08 2008-09 2009-10 
			 Strategic health authority Genito urinary system problems Sexually Transmitted Infections Genito urinary system problems Sexually  transmitted infections Genito urinary system problems Sexually  transmitted infections 
			 North East 68.2 6.9 76.0 11.0 95.0 12.5 
			 North West 193.6 32.3 201.6 32.7 229.1 40.2 
			 Yorkshire and Humber 126.1 15.5 140.2 28.0 166.0 27.1 
			 East Midlands 101.5 12.4 113.3 19.6 126.1 24.2 
			 West Midlands 141.7 22.1 156.3 30.3 164.6 28.6 
			 East of England 107.3 28.2 128.4 37.2 150.7 29.3 
			 London 175.2 63.2 205.9 70.6 263.1 66.6 
			 South East Coast 113.6 17.1 121.2 12.2 150.3 23.8 
			 South Central 98.6 23.9 94.7 15.2 96.7 16.6 
			 South West 120.6 17.0 129.7 21.2 149.4 19.5 
		
	
	
		
			 Programme budgeting estimated strategic health authority expenditure on infectious diseases for 2003-04 to 2009-10 and HIV and AIDS for 2006-07 to 2009-10 
			  Estimated expenditure on own population (£ million) 
			  2003-04 2004-05 2005-06 2006-07 
			 Strategic health authority Infectious  d iseases Infectious  diseases Infectious  d iseases Infectious  diseases HIV and AIDS 
			 North East 40.8 46.7 52.4 53.4 7.8 
			 North West 107.6 122.2 135.1 133.2 31.1 
			 Yorkshire and Humber 82.7 85.4 102.7 83.9 14.7 
			 East Midlands 54.9 65.7 73.5 59.3 10.9 
			 West Midlands 69.8 76.3 89.2 78.3 22.0 
			 East of England 69.3 81.9 91.0 96.2 23.3 
			 London 285.7 316.1 408.2 348.6 216.6 
			 South East Coast 63.2 71.0 74.4 77.9 26.4 
			 South Central 47.3 55.3 59.2 52.8 10.2 
			 South West 61.5 73.5 75.2 70.1 9.9 
		
	
	
		
			  Estimated expenditure on own population (£ million) 
			  2007-08 2008-09 2009-10 
			 Strategic health authority Infectious  d iseases HIV and AIDS Infectious  d iseases HIV and AIDS Infectious  d iseases HIV and AIDS 
			 North East 47.2 10.2 53.7 14.2 59.6 16.2 
			 North West 134.5 36.7 152.3 47.5 179.6 52.3 
			 Yorkshire and Humber 91.1 16.2 93.9 20.6 108.5 30.2 
			 East Midlands 66.8 13.4 72.3 20.0 88.5 23.7 
			 West Midlands 83.8 23.5 87.6 26.5 103.3 32.9 
			 East of England 86.6 17.9 84.2 23.9 127.9 43.1 
			 London 386.6 249.6 414.8 289.9 459.9 321.4 
			 South East Coast 86.7 35.1 104.2 51.2 106.3 48.5 
			 South Central 64.4 16.1 57.7 14.6 68.1 19.9 
			 South West 71.9 14.5 80.8 22.2 95.0 26.4 
			 Notes: 1. Estimated England level expenditure figures are calculated using PCT and SHA programme budgeting returns and Department of Health resource account data. Figures will include an estimate of special health authority expenditure. 2. SHA level expenditure is calculated using the combined expenditure on own population figures of each PCT within the SHA area. It does not include expenditure by the SHA. 3. In order to improve data quality, continual refinements have been made to the programme budgeting data calculation methodology since the first collection in 2003-04. The underlying data which support programme budgeting data are also subject to yearly changes. Caution is therefore advised when using programme budgeting data to draw conclusions on changes in spending patterns between years. 4. From 2003-04 to 2005-06, expenditure on sexually transmitted infections was included within the Genito Urinary system problems category and was therefore not separately identified. Expenditure on HIV and AIDS is not included in expenditure on sexually transmitted infections but has been separately identified as a subcategory of Infectious diseases since 2006-07. 5. Disease specific expenditure do not include expenditure on prevention, or health promotion and programmes such as the National Chlamydia Screening Programme or general practitioner expenditure, but do include prescribing expenditure. 6. Figures are rounded to the nearest £0.1 million.

Smoking

Jason McCartney: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent representations he has received from operators of cigarette vending machines on the implementation of the ban on such machines from 1 October 2011.

Anne Milton: We have received a number of items of correspondence from tobacco vending machine operators since July when litigation challenging the vending machine legislation was concluded. On 28 July 2011 the Supreme Court refused the application to appeal by Sinclair Collis (a vending machine operator wholly owned by Imperial Tobacco), following decisions in the High Court and Appeal Court finding the legislation to be lawful.
	Since July, the Department's officials have also worked in liaison with the National Association of Cigarette Machine Operators on the implementation of the legislation, including the development of guidance for those with cigarette vending machines on their premises.

Third Sector

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much direct funding his Department has allocated to each civil society organisation in (a) 2010-11, (b) 2011-12, (c) 2012-13, (d) 2013-14 and (e) 2014-15; and if he will make a statement.

Simon Burns: Information on all Department of Health funding to civil society organisations is not available in the format requested from central records and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
	It is possible to provide partial information using local records for the Department's main grant funding schemes for the third sector. Tables have been placed in the Library which show awards from the funding years 2010-11 and 2011-12 with the identifiable data available including:
	Innovation, Excellence and Service Development Fund;
	Strategic Partner Programme;
	Financial Assistance Funding (funding provided for one year only);
	Opportunities for Volunteering;
	The Volunteering Fund; and
	Children's Hospices.

Tuberculosis: Greater London

David Evennett: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many cases of tuberculosis have been diagnosed in (a) the London borough of Bexley and (b) London since 2010.

Anne Milton: The information requested is not currently available. The Health Protection Agency is due to publish, in November 2011, data on the number of cases of tuberculosis diagnosed in England during 2010.

Wi-Fi: Health Hazards

Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the effects on the health of (a) humans and (b) animals of multiple wi-fi networks which are operational 24 hours a day in flats or houses in multiple occupation; and if he will make a statement.

Anne Milton: The Health Protection Agency (HPA) advises the Government in relation to the protection of communities from radiation hazards, including those associated with exposure to non-ionising radiation such as the radio waves from wireless communication systems. The HPA has concluded that there is no consistent evidence to date that exposure to radio signals from wi-fi and wireless local area networks adversely affects the health of the general population. The signals are very low power, typically 0.1 watt (100 milliwatts) in both the computer and the router (access point), and the results so far show exposures are well within the internationally-accepted guidelines from the International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection. The HPA also considers it sensible, as with any new technology, to adopt a precautionary approach, and keeps the situation under review.
	The HPA's independent Advisory Group on Non-ionising Radiation (AGNIR) reviewed health effects in relation to radio waves in 2003 for the then National Radiological Protection Board (NRPB). See documents of the NRPB, volume 14, number 2, which is available on the HPA website at:
	www.hpa.org.uk/Publications/Radiation/NPRBArchive/DocumentsOfTheNRPB/Absd1402/
	AGNIR is currently updating this review and is due to publish its findings, in 2012. In between the publication of formal review reports, the HPA monitors emerging scientific studies and keeps its advice under review.
	The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs advises that it is unaware of any specific assessment on wi-fi networks and animal health.

JUSTICE

Departmental Billing

Mike Freer: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the average cost to his Department was of processing the payment of an invoice in the latest period for which figures are available; and what proportion of invoices settled in that period his Department paid (a) electronically and (b) by cheque.

Kenneth Clarke: For the latest period for which figures are available (September 2011), the average cost to the Ministry of Justice for payment of an invoice was £2.81.
	In that period 79.05% of invoices were settled electronically and 20.95% were settled by cheque.

Fines

Eilidh Whiteford: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many transport-related fines his Department has settled on behalf of its staff; and at what cost in each year since 2007.

Jonathan Djanogly: It is not the Ministry of Justice's policy to settle any transport-related fines on the behalf of its staff.
	There is no evidence held centrally to indicate since 2007 that the Ministry of Justice or its predecessor, the Department for Constitutional Affairs, settled any transport-related fines on behalf of its staff. To provide absolute confirmation of this would incur disproportionate cost.

Sick Leave

Mike Freer: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice for how many days on average his Department's staff in each pay grade were absent from work as a result of ill health in 2010-11.

Kenneth Clarke: In 2010-11 the average working days lost by civil service grade are set out in the following table:
	
		
			 Civil service grade Average working days lost (AWDL) 
			 AA 11.2 
			 AO 10.0 
			 EO 8.0 
			 HEO 6.2 
			 SEO 5.5 
			 G7 3.8 
			 G6 3.2 
			 SCS 1.8 
			 Overall 9.2 
			 Note: The AWDL data include the Ministry of Justice HQ (excluding agencies), National Offender Management Services, HM Courts and Tribunal Services, Office of Public Guardian, The National Archives, Land Registry, Wales Office and Scotland Office. 
		
	
	Reducing sickness absence continues to be a key priority for managers across the Ministry and its agencies. Locally owned targets are in place for all business areas. These are supported by action plans with activities designed to tackle sickness absence through early intervention, continuing effective management of each case and encouraging staff to return to work as soon as they are able.

Drugs: Convictions

Nicola Blackwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice pursuant to the answer of 15 June 2011, Official Report, column 839W, on drugs: convictions 
	(1)  in respect of how many offences of (a) possession and (b) supply and possession with intent to supply a drug in each category of classification the perpetrator was not brought to court but given a police caution in each of the last three years;
	(2)  how many cautions were given in relation to all categories of offence in each year for which figures were given;
	(3)  how many of the other sentences handed out for all three categories on drugs offences involved fines; and what the average fine imposed was in respect of each category of offence;
	(4)  what the average length of prison sentence was for each category of drug-related offence in each year since 2007;
	(5)  how many of those given maximum sentences for each of the categories of drugs offence between 2007 and 2010 received such sentences in (a) the Crown Court and (b) a magistrates court; and what the name was of each court in which such sentences were handed down;
	(6)  what the categories of other sentences represented in the table in the answer are; and how many of each category of offence were disposed of through each other sentence.

Crispin Blunt: I will write to my hon. Friend with the information requested as soon as possible.

Drugs: Convictions

Gareth Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many people in Dartford constituency have been convicted of offences related to (a) possession and (b) supply of illegal drugs of each classification level in each year since 2007; and how many such people received (i) a custodial sentence and (ii) the maximum sentence in each case.

Crispin Blunt: I will write to my hon. Friend with the information requested as soon as possible.

Legal Representation: Police Stations

Debbie Abrahams: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice pursuant to the Resolution of the House of 14 September 2011, on Access to a Lawyer, what his policy is on the right of access to a lawyer at a police station.

Kenneth Clarke: I issued a written ministerial statement on 11 October 2011, Official Report, columns 23-24WS, setting out the Government's position. The Government believe that access to a lawyer is an essential right of accused persons at appropriate stages of any process of criminal investigation. However, the Government have not opted in to the European Union Directive on Access to a Lawyer in Criminal Proceedings and on the Right to Communicate upon Arrest at the initial stage of the negotiations on the directive because we are of the view that the directive as published by the Commission is not proportionate and could have an adverse effect on our ability to investigate and prosecute offences effectively. The Government intend to work together with other member states to improve the directive and if the concerns we have are taken into account during the process of negotiation, we will consider applying to opt in once the instrument has been adopted.

Magistrates' Courts: Barry

Alun Cairns: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many letters he has received regarding the closure of Barry magistrates court.

Jonathan Djanogly: The Ministry of Justice has received seven Ministers' cases and ‘Treat Official’ correspondence regarding the closure of Barry magistrates court since the decision was announced on 14 December 2010.

Peterborough Prison: Drugs

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what assessment he has made of the Building Skills for Recovery substance misuse programme at HMP Peterborough; and if he will make a statement.

Crispin Blunt: Building Skills for Recovery (BSR) is a psychosocial programme based upon a cognitive behavioural model of treatment and the programme's aim is to reduce offending behaviour through the exploration of substance use and the acquisition of a skill set to prevent future relapse into former patterns and behaviours. It has been developed with guidance from a international body of experts in the field; the Correctional Services Accreditation Panel.
	Building Skills for Recovery has been piloted since January 2011 in both custody and community, with HMP Peterborough being one of the custody pilot sites delivering the programme to both male and female offenders. The pilot has now been evaluated and findings show that the programme has been received positively by both delivery teams and service users with many offenders reporting how much they had gained through completing the programme.
	The Building Skills for Recovery programme will be presented to the Correctional Services Accreditation Panel (CSAP) for formal accreditation on 26 October 2011.

Prison Sentences: Human Rights

Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice in how many cases his Department has paid compensation to (a) prisoners and (b) offenders who are not in prison, following complaints about their sentence on human rights grounds in each of the last five years; and what the total monetary value was of such compensation.

Crispin Blunt: The Ministry of Justice does not distinguish between compensation payments to former prisoners and serving prisoners. Therefore a full answer to the question could be obtained by interrogating hundreds of individual cases files and only at disproportionate costs.

Prison Sentences: Human Rights

Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many prisoners have challenged their prison sentence on human rights grounds in each of the last five years.

Jonathan Djanogly: The Ministry of Justice holds statistical information in relation to the number of appeals received against sentences, dealt with in the Crown court and the Criminal Division of the Court of Appeal. However, central administrative databases for courts do not store information on the number of prisoners who have challenged their sentence on human rights grounds in each of the last five years.
	While such appeals will be logged onto the administrative computer systems used in the Crown court and the Court of Appeal, they cannot be distinguished from other types of appeals. As such, the information requested can be obtained only through the manual inspection of individual case files held by the courts at disproportionate cost.
	Statistics are published on the number of appeals received and dealt with against sentences in England and Wales, from 2006 to 2010, in the Ministry of Justice's statistical bulletin ‘Judicial and Court Statistics’, the most recent edition of which was published on 30 June 2011. The number of appeals against sentences dealt with in the Crown court can be found in table 4.10 and those dealt with in the Court of Appeal in table 7.6. The report is available on the Ministry's website at:
	http://www.justice.gov.uk/publications/statistics-and-data/courts-and-sentencing/judicial-annual.htm

Prisoners: Indonesia

Mary Creagh: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many Indonesian nationals are currently held in UK prisons.

Crispin Blunt: As at the end of June 2011, the most recent available data, there were no Indonesian nationals in prison in England and Wales.
	Information on the foreign national prison population in England and Wales is published quarterly in the ‘Offender Management Statistics Quarterly Bulletin’ available on the Ministry of Justice website via the following link:
	http://www.justice.gov.uk/publications/statistics-and-data/prisons-and-probation/oms-quarterly.htm
	in table 1.5.
	These figures have been drawn from administrative IT systems which, as with any large scale recording system, are subject to possible errors with data entry and processing.

Prisons: Expenditure

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice 
	(1)  what estimate his Department has made of the average cost of a prisoner place bought by the National Offender Management Service from each privately-run prison in the latest period for which figures are available;
	(2)  what budget his Department allocated to each prison for financial years (a) 2010-11, (b) 2011-12, (c) 2012-13 and (d) 2013-14.

Crispin Blunt: The following table shows the latest cost per place and per prisoner available for financial year 2009-10. Figures for 2010-11 are not yet finalised.
	The direct cost reflects mainly the direct contract costs for each private prison. The overall cost also includes some costs met centrally by NOMS. This includes some estimation.
	The capital repayment element of the contractors’ charge is not included in the cost per place/prisoner as it is not part of the annual resource operating cost.
	Doncaster and Wolds are privately-managed prisons, while the remainder are run under private finance initiative contract arrangements.
	Cost per prison place is expressed in terms of the baseline certified normal accommodation number of places.
	
		
			 2009-10 
			 £ 
			  Direct resource expenditure Overall expenditure 
			  Cost per place Cost per prisoner Cost per place Cost per prisoner 
			 Altcourse 58,486 35,883 61,926 37,993 
			 Ashfield 56,858 81,292 57,273 81,885 
			 Bronzefield 51,817 54,865 56,126 59,428 
			 Doncaster 30,475 21,018 43,937 30,302 
			 Dovegate 34,844 32,995 37,039 35,074 
			 Forest Bank 36,051 26,300 40,173 29,307 
			 Lowdham Grange 31,114 29,215 34,191 32,105 
			 Parc 54,169 38,660 56,974 40,662 
			 Peterborough 37,253 32,937 41,462 36,658 
			 Rye Hill 30,775 28,284 33,632 30,910 
			 Wolds 29,195 24,197 40,737 33,765 
			 Total 40,840 33,354 45,409 37,086 
		
	
	Budgets
	The following table shows the direct resource outturn expenditure for each public sector prison for financial year 2010-11 and will shortly be published as an addendum to NOMS annual accounts for period 2010-11; individual budget allocations for 2011-12 are not routinely published and do not provide a useful source of data for meaningful comparisons as these are subject to change throughout the year to reflect operational business decisions.
	
		
			 2010-11 direct resource expenditure 
			  £ million 
			 Garth 20.1 
			 Gartree 17.1 
			 Grendon (HMP Grendon and Springhill) 14.2 
			 Kingston 6.1 
			 Acklington 19.0 
			 Ashwell 8.1 
			 Blundeston 12.5 
			 Buckley Hall 9.8 
			 Bullwood Hall 6.5 
			 Bure 11.2 
			 Canterbury 7.3 
			 Channings Wood 15.9 
			 Coldingley 14.1 
			 Dartmoor 14.3 
			 Edmunds Hill 9.1 
			 Erlestoke 10.7 
			 Everthorpe 12.2 
			 Featherstone 14.5 
			 Guys Marsh 11.6 
			 Haverigg 13.7 
			 Highpoint 17.7 
			 HMP Kennet 10.9 
			 Lancaster Castle 7.2 
			 Lindholme (includes Immigration Removal Centre) 19.5 
			 Littlehey 22.4 
			 Maidstone 11.4 
			 Moorland 20.4 
			 Mount (The) 16.3 
			 Onley 15.9 
			 Ranby 20.9 
			 Risley 20.8 
			 Shepton Mallet 5.8 
			 Stafford 14.6 
			 Stocken 15.5 
			 Usk 7.6 
			 Verne (The) 11.3 
			 Wayland 18.0 
		
	
	
		
			 Wealstun 17.0 
			 Wellingborough 11.9 
			 Whatton 17.2 
			 Wymott 23.2 
			 Frankland 39.6 
			 Full Sutton 28.6 
			 Long Lartin 29.1 
			 Wakefield 29.2 
			 Whitemoor 30.4 
			 Downview 9.9 
			 Foston Hall 9.0 
			 Send 8.5 
			 Eastwood Park 11.4 
			 Holloway 18.9 
			 Low Newton 11.5 
			 New Hall 14.5 
			 Styal 14.1 
			 Askham Grange 3.1 
			 East Sutton Park 2.7 
			 Aylesbury 12.6 
			 Brinsford 15.5 
			 Castington 13.4 
			 Deerbolt 14.2 
			 Feltham 31.9 
			 Glen Parva 17.6 
			 Hindley 18.6 
			 Isis 12.3 
			 Lancaster Farms 15.4 
			 Northallerton 5.5 
			 Portland 14.9 
			 Reading 8.2 
			 Rochester 16.6 
			 Stoke Heath 17.1 
			 Swinfen Hall 14.6 
			 Cookham Wood 9.5 
			 Huntercombe 12.9 
			 Warren Hill 10.1 
			 Werrington 7.1 
			 Wetherby 15.8 
			 Bedford 11.6 
			 Belmarsh 39.7 
			 Birmingham 30.0 
			 Bristol 15.5 
			 Brixton 21.4 
			 Bullingdon 21.1 
			 Cardiff 16.1 
			 Chelmsford 17.5 
			 Dorchester 7.3 
			 Durham 22.2 
			 Exeter 13.0 
			 Gloucester 8.9 
			 Highdown 22.1 
			 Holme House 24.6 
			 Hull 20.5 
			 Leeds 23.5 
			 Leicester 8.9 
			 Lewes 15.6 
			 Lincoln 14.5 
			 Liverpool 26.3 
			 Manchester 36.0 
			 Norwich 16.0 
			 Nottingham 22.2 
			 Pentonville 29.2 
		
	
	
		
			 Preston 18.5 
			 Shrewsbury 8.5 
			 Swansea 9.3 
			 Wandsworth 33.5 
			 Winchester 14.6 
			 Woodhill 32.9 
			 Wormwood Scrubs 27.1 
			 Ford 7.8 
			 Hollesley Bay 6.9 
			 Kirkham 12.9 
			 Leyhill 10.6 
			 North Sea Camp 6.1 
			 Sudbury 8.1 
			 Thorn Cross 8.5 
			 Blantyre House 3.0 
			 Drake Hall 8.1 
			 Kirklevington Grange 5.6 
			 Latchmere House 4.4 
			 Morton Hall 7.9 
			 Brockhill/Hewell Grange/Blakenhurst 28.3 
			 Sheppey Clustered Services 51.9 
			 Isle of Wight 39.5 
			 Total 1,955.8 
			   
			 Notes: 1. Figures subject to rounding. 2. In order to improve comparability, rental costs (such as land or premises ) are not included in the figures for Dartmoor, Lancaster Castle, Huntercombe and Shrewsbury. 3. Figures do not include private/contracted out prisons. 4. Data for Elmley, Standford Hill and Swaleside prisons included under Isle of Sheppey cluster. 5. Data for Blakenhurst, Brockhill and Hewell Grange prisons included as one cluster. 6. Data for Albany, Camp Hill and Parkhurst prisons included under Isle of Wight cluster. 7. Dover and Hasler are excluded (Immigration Removal Centres). 
		
	
	Establishment funding s ettlements 2012-13 and 2013-14
	Budget allocations for financial years 2012-13 and 2013-14 are not yet allocated.

Prisons: Private Sector

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice for what reason staff in the contracted out prison estate are not able to participate in national control and restraint teams; and if he will make a statement.

Crispin Blunt: There are no restrictions on the participation of staff from contracted-out prisons in national control and restraint teams. The contracted-out prisons are trained by public sector staff and are deployed alongside Her Majesty’s Prison Service staff.

Prisons: Private Sector

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what recent progress he has made in reducing delays in the transfer of assets between the prison public and contracted out estate; and if he will make a statement.

Crispin Blunt: HMP Birmingham is the only prison which was required to transfer to the contracted out estate following a recent competition. The transfer occurred on 1 October 2011 to schedule and with no delays.

Squatting: Crime

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what steps he is taking to help protect property owners from squatters.

Crispin Blunt: We have been consulting publicly on options for dealing with squatting, including the possibility of criminalisation. The consultation exercise ended on 5 October 2011. We will consider the consultation responses carefully before deciding which option to pursue.

CULTURE MEDIA AND SPORT

Brighton

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport if he will set out, with statistical evidence relating as closely as possible to Brighton Pavilion constituency, the effects of his Department's policies on that constituency from 11 October 2010 to date.

John Penrose: The impact of the Department's policies on the Brighton, Pavilion constituency—including those delivered by our arm’s length bodies—from 11 October 2010 to date, include:
	Digital switchover is due to take place in the Brighton, Pavilion constituency in February 2012. By the time switchover is complete at the end of 2012, 98.5% of households nationwide will be able to receive digital TV—the same number that can currently receive analogue.
	The Arts Council has supported projects in Brighton, Pavilion with a total of £2,541,634.
	Heritage Lottery Fund has provided grants of £183,200 to the constituency.
	174 National Lottery grants totalling £4,728,057 were awarded to the Brighton and Hove area in 2010 and 125 grants with a total value of £5,563,838 have been awarded in 2011. Full details of the grants awarded for this year, including a breakdown of the amount and recipient project, can be found on the Department's website, using the link:
	http://www.lottery.culture.gov.uk/SearchResults.aspx?Year=2011&LA=Brighton%20and%20Hove
	The Department has implemented a number of new policies which are impacting upon, and will continue to affect the Brighton Pavilion constituency. These include:
	The establishment and launch of the school games in September 2011, which will give every child the opportunity to take part and compete in sport, and create a legacy from London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic games.
	The launch of the local TV action plan, with the goal for 10 to 20 local TV services to be in operation by 2015.
	Supporting English local authorities and the devolved Administrations in rolling out broadband in remote areas, with the target of delivering the best superfast broadband in Europe by 2015.
	The publication of a long-term strategy for tourism to create a legacy from London 2012 and the Queen's diamond jubilee, with the aim of attracting an extra four million overseas visitors over the next four years, bringing in an extra £2 billion of spending and creating thousands of jobs.
	The Brighton, Pavilion constituency has also benefited from other policies and spending whose impact cannot be broken down by constituency, such as:
	Over £4 billion of Exchequer funding spent on culture.
	Between 2005-06 and 2010-11, the proportion of people visiting a museum, gallery or archive in the last year increased (from 42.3% to 47.5%). There was a record 43.8 million visitors to museums in 2010-11—with many museums recording their highest visitor figures ever.

Broadband: Scotland

Margaret Curran: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what information his Department holds on the number of households in each income decile in Scotland which have access to broadband internet.

Edward Vaizey: The Department for Culture, Media and Sport does not record information on households with broadband by income decile. Where appropriate the Department for Culture, Media and Sport refers to data in Ofcom's Communications Market reports and other publicly available data.
	Page 29 figure 4.2 of Ofcom's latest Communications Market report: Scotland, published in August 2011, includes data on broadband take up in Scotland by social group and household income.
	http://stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk/binaries/research/cmr/cmr11/CMR_2011_Scotland.pdf

Procurement

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport how many contracts his Department has awarded directly to third sector organisations in each month since May 2010; what the value was of such contracts; and if he will make a statement.

John Penrose: This Department has awarded four contracts directly to third sector organisations, since May 2010. The value of a contract awarded in July 2010 was £464.65, and in April 2011, three contracts totalling £114,131.66 were awarded.

Procurement

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport how many contracts his Department has awarded directly to (a) small, (b) medium-sized and (c) large businesses in each month since May 2010; what the value was of such contracts; and if he will make a statement.

John Penrose: The number of contracts this Department has awarded to small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and large businesses since May 2010, with their value, are in the following table:
	
		
			 Date SME contracts Value (£) Large company contracts Value (£) 
			 May 2010 4 8,507.65 1 1,753.30 
			 June 2010 4 22,223,80 0 0 
			 July 2010 4 6,068,87 2 2,863 
			 August 2010 2 3,142 2 23,400 
			 September 2010 3 4,050 1 2,000 
		
	
	
		
			 October 2010 3 11,700 1 3,090 
			 November 2010 3 13,340 1 3,524.22 
			 December 2010 1 6,484.30 0 0 
			 January 2011 14 225,504.26 3 9,095.60 
			 February 2011 23 124,520.82 4 17,797.78 
			 March 2011 22 85,526.71 8 161,431 
			 April 2011 16 907,159.07 3 59,305.23 
			 May 2011 9 64,698.03 5 148,566 
			 June 2011 15 318,648 5. 7,077.92 
			 July 2011 13 28,601.90 3 5,353,937 
			 August 2011 17 8,856.24 3 24,349 
			 September 2011 10 72,136.91 1 24,022.47 
			 Total 163 1,911,168.56 43 5,842,212.52 
		
	
	The Department does not separate SMEs.

Cyber-Security

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what steps his Department is taking to improve cyber-security in relation to his Department's estate; and if he will make a statement.

Edward Vaizey: The Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) has a yearly IT security compliance review that includes an independent penetration test against its firewalls and associated policies. Assurance obtained through conducting such tests is used as evidence to demonstrate compliance when renewing the Government secure internet (GSI) code of connection. This is a yearly requirement that incorporates new measures regarding cyber security detailed in the Government's Communication Electronics Security Group (CESG) Good Practice Guides which must be satisfied in order for the Department to conduct business up to and including Impact Level 3 (Restricted). DCMS currently has full accreditation certified by CESG. In addition to the yearly audit, the Department receives regular threat assessments from the technical authority GovCertUK that are addressed immediately by Atos, the Department's IT service provider.

Film Industry

Jim McGovern: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport how much money his Department allocated to support the British film industry through (a) the National Lottery, (b) grant-in-aid to the UK Film Council, British Film Institute, the National Film and Television School, (c) national and regional development schemes, (d) BBC and Channel 4 Films and (e) EU funding for each year from 2008 to 2013; and how much of the allocated funding was spent in each year from 2008 to 2011.

Edward Vaizey: Grant in Aid (GIA) and Lottery allocation (before Olympic reduction) and spend for film through the UK Film Council (UKFC) and British Film Institute (BFI) as of 1 April 2011 are as follows:
	
		
			 £ million 
			  2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 
			 Income      
			 Lottery income 32,038 34,248 36,968 39,941 46,049 
			 GIA allocation 30,064 37,034 45,563 31,218 23,152 
			       
			 Expenditure      
			 Lottery spend 40,315 41,323 38,541 — — 
			 GIA spend 30,131 39,342 45,307 — — 
			 The National Film and Television School (GIA) 2,978 3,059 3,038 (1)1,452 — 
			 (1) Year to date. 
		
	
	The Department does not direct the BBC to spend any specific sum on films. Within the framework of its Charter and Agreement and the licence fee settlement, it is for the BBC to decide how to allocate its funding in the fulfilment of its objectives.
	The Department does not provide any funding to Channel 4, which is commercially funded. Funding for regional programmes is allocated through the UK Film Council/BFI, Regional Development Agencies and European funds and not directly by the Department.
	The Department does not allocate EU funding for film.
	Details of funding through the MEDIA programme and other EU funding for film as well as details of national and regional funding and funding allocated by the BBC and Film4 can be seen in the BFI Statistical Yearbook:
	http://statisticalyearbook11.ry.com/?id=83050

Local Broadcasting: Radio

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport for what reasons community radio organisations in Liverpool are excluded from making applications for community radio licences in 2012-13.

Edward Vaizey: Community radio organisations in Liverpool are not excluded from applying for community radio licences in 2012-13. Applications for licences from the north-west will be invited in the first half of 2013. While there are some areas of the north-west where Ofcom will be unable to invite applications for FM licences, due to a lack of available frequencies, Ofcom will consider at the time applications are invited, whether capacity on medium wave might be available.

Mobile Phones

Andrew Percy: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what assessment he has made of the potential economic value to the UK of the deployment of long-term evolution mobile technology.

Edward Vaizey: Any assessment of the economic value of LTE services to the UK would normally fall to Ofcom to produce. The Department has not made any such assessment.

ATTORNEY-GENERAL

Consultants

David Simpson: To ask the Attorney-General what procedures the Law Officers' Departments use when engaging external consultants.

Dominic Grieve: The Treasury Solicitor's Department (TSol) adheres to Cabinet Office guidance which requires consultancy contracts of £20,000 and above to receive appropriate departmental approval, and Cabinet Office and HM Treasury approval where:
	Contracts are expected to last longer than nine months
	Pre-existing contracts are extended to take the total life of the contract beyond nine months, or:
	In the case of procurement-related consultancy, the cost is over £20,000.
	Internally, all funding applications are submitted to the finance director for preliminary checks to ensure that the requirement is of operational necessity; it cannot be met by in-house resources; and the commercial proposal represents value for money with a demonstrable return on investment and does not exceed advice on prices and rates provided by the Efficiency Reform Group. Subject to these criteria being met a request for approval is put to TSol's Performance & Investment Committee.
	In the event that the use of consultants is approved, the procurement will be undertaken using, preferably, an existing framework arrangement or through an open competition advertised on the approved Contracts Finder site. TSol is also mindful that, should tendered prices exceed approved rate card maxima, it may be necessary to re-submit the business case for appropriate approvals.
	If the Department were to require consultancy services above the threshold of £20,000, the Department would formally reconsider the need for the services every three months and, should the need appear likely to continue beyond a nine month period, seek Cabinet Office approval to prolong the contract.
	In parallel with its formal procedures, TSol seeks to secure value for money and knowledge transfer from consultants as part of its ongoing management of resources.
	The Attorney-General's Office and HM Crown Prosecution Service Inspectorate are covered by the same arrangements used by TSol.
	The Serious Fraud Office (SFO) follows the same central Government procurement guidelines for engaging external consultants as with any other procurement process. Guidance is provided to SFO staff.
	The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) defines consultancy services in line with the Office of Government Commerce's Consultancy Value programme.
	In May 2010, the CPS adopted a new approval process for all consultancy engagements. The process involves the preparation of a business case which contains as a minimum: a description of the requirement; the anticipated length of engagement; and confirmation that the required skills are not available in-house.
	All business cases are referred to the finance director and chief executive officer (CEO) for approval. Those expected to exceed £20,000 in value are referred for ministerial level approval. Any extensions to approved engagements must follow the same process.
	Contracts for approved engagements are let via collaborative government framework agreements for consultancy services. Only in exceptional circumstances, where the required skills are not available via such agreements, would consideration be given to contracting with a firm or individual outside of a collaborative government framework agreement.

Consultants

Kelvin Hopkins: To ask the Attorney-General how many consultants were employed in each of the Law Officers' Departments in each of the last three years; and from which companies.

Dominic Grieve: Details on the consulting firms used by the Law Officers' Departments during the last three financial years are contained in the following tables. Where data are available the number of consultants engaged from each firm has been provided.
	
		
			 Serious Fraud Office 
			  Number 
			 2008-09  
			 Corven 4 
			 Deloitte 1 
			 Involve 12 
			 PA Consulting 15 
			 Penna 2 
			 Veredus 2 
			 Luther Pendragon 1 
			   
			 2009-10  
			 Corven 9 
			 Involve 12 
			 PA Consulting 9 
			 Penna 2 
			 SCC 2 
		
	
	
		
			 Waterman 1 
			   
			 2010-11  
			 Avanquest 1 
			 COA Solutions 1 
			 Corven 3 
			 DTZ 2 
			 Eventworks 12 
			 Governetz 3 
			 Hill and Knowlton 1 
			 PA Consulting 11 
			 Penna 2 
			 Ravyn Systems 1 
			 SCC 2 
		
	
	
		
			 Treasury Solicitor's Department (TSol) (1) (, 2) 
			  Number 
			 2008-09 — 
			 Capgemini — 
			 Deloitte — 
			 KPMG — 
			 Tribal Consulting — 
			 Methods Consulting — 
			   
			 2009-10  
			 PA Consulting Group — 
			 Jacobs Babtie — 
			 Hyder Consulting — 
			   
			 2010-11  
			 Knight Frank — 
			 (1) The TSol data also cover the Attorney General's Office and HM Crown Prosecution Service Inspectorate. (2 )TSol do not retain information on the number of individual consultants employed. 
		
	
	
		
			 Crown Prosecution Service (l) 
			  Number 
			 2008-09  
			 Alpine Consortium en 1 
			 AMQIS Consortium 1 
			 AMTEC 1 
			 Badenoch and Clark 4 
			 Certes Computing Ltd 1 
			 DBI Consulting 1 
			 ELAN Computers 1 
			 Evolve Business Consultancy 3 
			 GovGap (COI) 2 
			 HedraPlc 1 
			 King's College School of Law 1 
			 Logica 1 
			 Methods Consulting 1 
			 Monarch Recruitment 1 
			 Mouchel 2 
			 NESCO 1 
			 NescoIT 1 
			 Networkers MSB 3 
			 Parity Resources 1 
			 QI Consulting 2 
			 Sand Resources Ltd 1 
			 Selex Communications 1 
			 Tribal/Avail 2 
			 Tribal Consortium 1 
		
	
	
		
			   
			 2009-10  
			 Avail Consulting 1 
			 Capgemini 1 
			 DBI Consulting 1 
			 Elan Computing 1 
			 GovGap 2 
			 Legal Inc 1 
			 Methods Consulting 1 
			 Mouchel 1 
			 NES IT 2 
			 NetworkersMSB 1 
			 PA Consulting 3 
			 Sand Resources 1 
			 Selex Communications 1 
			 Tribal Consortium 1 
			 Tribal Avail 2 
			   
			 2010-11  
			 Badenoch and Clark 1 
			 Outsource 1 
			 Tribal Consortium 1 
			 (1 )The table includes consultants who were appointed via employment agencies and other third parties, as well as those supplied via consultancy firms. Excluded are freelance consultants who were appointed directly and engagements with consultancy firms where a named individual was not appointed to work on the assignment. The CPS is a devolved organisation and it is possible that consultancy engagements between April 2008 and March 2011 have been entered into locally and not included in central records. To verify the details of any such engagements would incur disproportionate cost.

Consultants

Kelvin Hopkins: To ask the Attorney-General how much expenditure each of the Law Officers' Departments incurred on consultancy in each of the last three years.

Edward Garnier: The information requested is contained in the following table.
	
		
			 Consultancy expenditure 2008-09 to 2010-11 
			 £ 
			 Department 2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 
			 Crown Prosecution Service 1,559,911 1,881,834 687,315 
			 Treasury Solicitor's Department(1) 257,000 53,000 9,000 
			 Serious Fraud Office 2,513,000 2,199,000 1,583,000 
			 (1) The TSol data also cover the Attorney-General's Office and HM Crown Prosecution Service Inspectorate.

Departmental Press: Subscriptions

Mike Freer: To ask the Attorney-General how much the Law Officers' Departments spent on newspapers, periodicals and trade profession magazines in 2010-11.

Edward Garnier: The information requested is contained in the following table.
	
		
			 Department Recorded expenditure on newspapers, periodicals and trade profession magazines 2010-11 (£) 
			 Crown Prosecution Service 131,809 
			 Serious Fraud Office 42,563 
		
	
	
		
			 Treasury Solicitor's Department(1) (2)6,435 
			 (1) The TSol data also cover the Attorney-General's Office and HM Crown Prosecution Service Inspectorate. (2) Expenditure on periodicals and trade magazines is not recorded separately from that on law reports (which would not be classed as magazines). It is not possible to separately identify subscriptions to periodicals and trade profession magazines without incurring a disproportionate cost.

Sick Leave

Mike Freer: To ask the Attorney-General for how many days on average staff of the Law Officers' Departments in each pay grade were absent from work as a result of ill health in 2010-11.

Edward Garnier: The information requested is contained in the following table.
	
		
			 Average working days lost per year through ill health 
			 Grade Treasury Solicitor's Department (1) Crown Prosecution Service Serious Fraud Office 
			 AA 6.7 10.5 n/a 
			 AO 16.3 11.2 19.35 
			 EO 11.1 9.4 14.62 
			 HEO 4.6 7.5 15.44 
			 SEO 4.6 7.3 7.1 
			 G7 4.1 7.9 5.8 
			 G6 3.6 3.9 3.2 
			 SCS 1.0 1.1 1.0 
			 (1) The TSol data also cover the Attorney-General’s Office and HM Crown Prosecution Service Inspectorate.

DEFENCE

Defence Business Services

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when he expects to appoint a new partner for Defence Business Services.

Andrew Robathan: The competitive dialogue process is expected to conclude by Christmas at which point we will make a decision whether or not to award the contract to a commercial partner or retain the current in-house management. This decision will be taken on value for money grounds.

AlixPartners

Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what discussions his Department has had with the Cabinet Office's Efficiency and Reform Group in connection with the appointment of AlixPartners.

Peter Luff: Discussions took place on a number of different occasions between the Ministry of Defence (MOD) and the Cabinet Office's Efficiency and Reform Group on the MOD's need for external support to deliver the Department's strategic defence and security review renegotiation programme in connection with the appointment of AlixPartners.

Armed Forces: Charities

Huw Irranca-Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of trends in the number of charities supporting the armed forces since 2003.

Andrew Robathan: We are very grateful for the vital role played by the voluntary sector in support of the armed forces community. COBSEO, the Confederation of Service Charities, plays an important role in co-ordinating the work of charities in this sector.
	However, charities are independent bodies which the Ministry of Defence has no remit to oversee and therefore we hold no data on the number of new charities being created to support the armed forces community.

Armed Forces: Females

Matthew Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what proportion of armed forces personnel were women in each (a) service and (b) rank in the latest period for which figures are available.

Andrew Robathan: The information requested is given in the following table:
	
		
			 Percentage 
			 1 April 2011 All services Naval service Army RAF 
			 Total 9.6 9.4 8.0 13.8 
			      
			 Officers 12.3 9.7 11.3 15.7 
			 OF-9 0 0 0 0 
			 OF-8 0 0 0 0 
			 OF-7 0 0 0 0 
			 OF-6 1.7 0 0.6 5.5 
			 OF-5 3.4 1.0 3.6 5.2 
			 OF-4 5.8 3.0 6.2 7.7 
			 OF-3 11.8 8.7 11.4 15.3 
			 OF-2 15.2 13.7 13.6 18.2 
			 OF-l/OF-(D) 14.7 12.1 13.1 19.2 
			      
			 Other ranks 9.0 9.3 7.4 13.2 
			 OR-9 4.5 3.9 5.9 2.9 
			 OR-8 4.7 0.5 5.4 0 
			 OR-7 6.0 4.9 7.0 5.3 
			 OR-6 9.8 7.6 9.1 12.5 
			 OR-4 11.9 11.7 9.7 16.0 
			 OR-3 7.5 0.2 7.8 0 
			 OR-l/OR-2 9.1 11.1 6.3 14.6

Armed Forces: Finance

Stephen McPartland: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what financial support is available for armed forces personnel returning to civilian life who began serving before 2005 but who have fewer than 20 years service.

Andrew Robathan: There is a resettlement training grant of £534 that is available to service leavers who have served six or more years to assist them in paying for resettlement training. The grant is also available to all service personnel who are medically discharged, regardless of their length of service. Resettlement support for the majority of service leavers is provided by the Career Transition Partnership (CTP).
	Further support is available to eligible personnel, through various training courses (which are free from tuition fees); career transition workshops; employment and future career advice; assistance with CV writing and job preparation; vocational training; and a job-search/recruitment facility.
	Furthermore, dependent on their pension scheme, rank and length of service, those who leave the armed forces and have no immediate terminal benefit may be eligible for a resettlement grant.

Armed Forces: Health Services

Michael Crockart: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the likely effects of the outcome of his Department's basing review on the Defence Medical Services in Scotland.

Andrew Robathan: It is too early to say at this time what the future of the Defence Medical Services in Scotland may be. A full assessment of the potential effects will be undertaken once the current basing review work is completed.

Armed Forces: Housing

Gordon Henderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much his Department has spent on rent for private sector accommodation for use by armed forces personnel in (a) 2007, (b) 2008, (c) 2009 and (d) 2010.

Andrew Robathan: Substitute Service Family Accommodation (SSFA) and Substitute Service Single Accommodation (SSSA) properties may be rented to accommodate service families and single serving personnel respectively when no suitable Ministry of Defence accommodation is available to entitlement at or close to the duty station. Substitute accommodation is only used as a last resort and often more than one service person may occupy an SSSA property.
	The amount spent on SSFA and SSSA per financial year is shown in the following tables:
	
		
			 SSFA properties 
			 Financial year Number of SSFA properties (as at 31 March) Cost (£ million) 
			 2006-07 1,279 18 
			 2007-08 1,190 18 
			 2008-09 1,391 20 
			 2009-10 1,524 22 
			 2010-11 1,668 23 
		
	
	
		
			 SSSA properties 
			 Financial year Number of SSSA properties (as at 31 March) Cost (£ million) 
			 2006-07 4,095 40.5 
			 2007-08 4,479 44.5 
			 2008-09 4,806 50.9 
			 2009-10 4,803 55.9 
			 2010-11 4,454 53.0 
		
	
	These figures do not include properties rented from Annington Homes Ltd, bulk hire or those subject to private finance initiative arrangements.

Armed Forces: Housing

Michael Crockart: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the (a) length of contract and (b) other terms are of the private finance initiative with Bannockburn Homes Ltd in respect of service family accommodation for Redford and Dreghorn Barracks.

Andrew Robathan: The private finance initiative (PFI) with Bannockburn Homes Ltd for service family accommodation (SFA) in central Scotland is for a period of 20 years, which expires on 30 June 2019.
	The terms of the PFI relate to the provision of 165 SFA homes across central Scotland, of which 103 are in the Edinburgh area.

Armed Forces: Housing

Zac Goldsmith: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence for what reason there will be a three-year pause in the upgrade of service family accommodation properties from 2013.

Andrew Robathan: There will be a pause in the upgrade programme while the Ministry of Defence (MOD) works to reduce its funding gap, and to balance defence priorities and the budget whilst protecting front-line operations.
	The MOD will continue to fund routine and response maintenance on accommodation, together with minor new works, including special needs adaptations; carpet replacement; and improvements delivered through the asset replacement programme, during the three year upgrade pause.

Armed Forces: Housing

Gordon Henderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much his Department received in income from charging armed forces personnel for use of accommodation rented from the private sector in (a) 2007, (b) 2008, (c) 2009 and (d) 2010.

Andrew Robathan: The requested information is not held in the format requested.
	Occupancy charges for service accommodation are the same whether it is rented from the private sector or owned by the Department. The level of charges is set by the Armed Forces Pay Review Body and charges are deducted from salary at source.

Armed Forces: Private Education

Michael Crockart: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the likely effects of the outcome of the basing review on levels of continuing educational allowance claimed in Scotland.

Andrew Robathan: In the longer term, concentration on fewer bases and the likelihood that many personnel will have more settled careers allowing greater stability of home life should reduce the requirement for Continuity of Education Allowance (CEA). CEA remains available to all service personnel who meet the eligibility criteria.

Armed Forces: Redundancy

Bill Esterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many service personnel have applied to be considered for redundancy since May 2010; and what assessment he has made of the effect of redundancy notices issued to service personnel on active duty.

Andrew Robathan: holding answer 12 October 2011
	There have been some 2,300 applications from members of the armed forces to be considered for compulsory redundancy in tranche one, of which 1,770 were accepted.
	Service personnel in receipt of the operational allowance were exempt from redundancy unless they were volunteers. Those applicants who volunteered and were selected for redundancy while serving on operations are receiving the same level of support and advice as any others.

Armed Forces: Redundancy

Michael Connarty: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will allow families of members of the armed forces facing redundancy to remain in their current location until the decisions on such redundancies have been made.

Andrew Robathan: We have recently notified those service personnel selected for redundancy in tranche one, and where possible we will allow their families to remain in their current locations until the discharge date.
	Details regarding the redundancy fields for future tranches are currently being considered by individual service manning authorities. Until a service man or woman has been selected for redundancy he or she remains deployable both in the United Kingdom and overseas. If the assignment is for accompanied service, entitlement to service families accommodation is limited to the new duty station.

Armed Forces: Scotland

Michael Crockart: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what arrangements he plans to put in place to ensure that military personnel in all parts of Scotland have access to similar facilities to those provided by the (a) Army Education Centre, (b) Army Learning Centre and (c) Edinburgh HIVE following the closure of Redford and Dreghorn Barracks.

Andrew Robathan: The announcement made by the previous Secretary of State for Defence, my right hon. Friend the Member for North Somerset (Dr Fox), on 18 July 2011, Official Report, columns 643-45, set out our strategic long-term direction on the structure of the Army and its basing requirements across the United Kingdom. Comprehensive planning work is now under way to draw up plans for the timing and sequencing of these changes within the Army and to consider the infrastructure and services necessary to support those units and personnel who will be based in Scotland.
	Until this work is complete and further detail is known about the size and type of units that will be required to support the future Army lay down in Scotland, it is too soon to confirm how this will affect individual units or indeed to confirm where they will reside in the future. This will in turn affect the provision of services to service personnel and their families. Therefore, no decisions have currently been made on the future provision of Army Education Centre, Army Learning Centre or the Edinburgh HIVE facilities.

Armed Forces: Training

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans he has for personnel using the Maritime Composite Training System to conduct live training with service personnel from foreign nations using the Joint Multinational Interoperability Assurance Network.

Nick Harvey: The Royal Navy plans to commence Maritime Composite Training System inter-operability trials with two of its NATO partners in April 2012.

Armed Forces: Young People

Frank Roy: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many members of the armed forces under the age of 18 years saw active service in (a) 2008-09, (b) 2009-10 and (c) 2010-11.

Andrew Robathan: In accordance with the Optional Protocol to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child on the Involvement of Children in Armed Conflict (the Optional Protocol), Ministry of Defence policy is not to deploy personnel aged under 18 on operations.
	The United Kingdom ratified the Optional Protocol on 24 June 2003 and remains firmly committed to it. Every feasible step is taken, in accordance with our obligations, to prevent the involvement in hostilities of service personnel under the age of 18.
	We have protective measures, including single-service administrative guidelines and procedures and a system for tracking personnel, to reduce as far as possible the risk of unintentional deployments. We have also revised and re-issued the “Policy on the Care of Service Personnel under the Age of 18”. Our processes are, however, not infallible and the pressures on units prior to deployment have meant that there have been a small number of instances where service personnel have been inadvertently deployed to an operational theatre before their 18th birthday.
	There were four members of the armed forces who were under the age of 18 years and deployed to operational theatres between April 2008 and March 2010. As a result of tighter controls in units and at RAF Brize Norton no service personnel under the age of 18 years has deployed since January 2010.
	It is important to note that more than 60,000 service personnel have deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan since 1 April 2008. On the rare occasions when service personnel under the age of 18 years deploy in error, it is our policy to remove them from an operational theatre as soon as possible.

Armoured Fighting Vehicles

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many Piranha 10x10 armoured vehicles his Department has acquired under urgent operational requirements; from which countries such vehicles were required; and what their operational role was.

Peter Luff: None.

BAE Systems

Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the effect of reductions in his Department's expenditure on the level of its contracts with BAE Systems; and if he will make a statement.

Peter Luff: As part of the Strategic Defence and Security Review (SDSR) implementation process, we have engaged with BAE Systems on a programme of commercial negotiations for contracts impacted directly by SDSR decisions. These negotiations continue, and cover all aspects of the Department's future requirements with the company and the company's capabilities. I am withholding the details of these discussions as their disclosure would prejudice commercial interests.

Civil Society Department: Finance

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many letters he has received on funding for civil society organisations within his Department's area of responsibility in each month since 1 June 2010; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Robathan: The information requested is not held in a format that would allow for the identification of the number of letters about funding for the civil sector without incurring disproportionate cost.

Departmental Buildings

Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what estimate he has made of the monetary value of the maintenance backlog on his Department's estate in each of the last five years; and what estimate he has made of the time required to complete such maintenance.

Andrew Robathan: Although no formal estimate exists in respect of backlog maintenance for the Ministry of Defence estate as a whole, based on information available for the estate based in Great Britain it is estimated that the cost of bringing the estate up to a consistent, desired standard is likely to be in excess of £1 billion.

Fines

Eilidh Whiteford: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many transport-related fines his Department has settled on behalf of its staff in each year since 2007; and at what cost.

Andrew Robathan: Individual staff are personally liable for payment of any financial penalties for driving offences incurred while on official duty.

Departmental Manpower

Eilidh Whiteford: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many civilian employees, including civil servants, his Department has employed on average in each year since 2005.

Andrew Robathan: The first table shows the average strength of the Ministry of Defence civilian work force by financial year from 2004-05 to 2010-11. The average figure for financial year 2011-12 is not yet available. Therefore the second table shows strength in April and July 2011.
	
		
			 Financial year Full-time equivalent (FTE) 
			 2004-05(1) 108,750 
			 2005-06(1) 106,760 
			 2006-07(1) 101,000 
		
	
	
		
			 2007-08(1) 94,100 
			 2008-09(1) 87,950 
			 2009-10(1) 86,230 
			 2010-11(1) 84,460 
		
	
	
		
			  Full-time equivalent (FTE) 
			 April 2011(2, 3) 83,060 
			 July 2011(2) 81,150 
			 (1) Average strength based on a weighted 13 month average, summing half of first and last month, plus all of remaining 11 months and dividing by 12. (2) Totals include core top-level budget staff, trading fund personnel, Royal Fleet Auxiliary staff, and locally engaged civilians. (3) Denotes estimate—April 2011 locally engaged civilian figures are ‘estimates' due to non-availability of data. Notes: 1. All numbers rounded to the nearest 10. Numbers ending in five have been rounded to the nearest multiple of 20 to prevent systematic bias. 2. All numbers are listed in full-time equivalent terms. Source: DASA (Quad-Service)

Procurement

Julian Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what progress his Department has made in eliminating pre-qualification questionnaires for procurements with a value of under £100,000.

Peter Luff: The Ministry of Defence (MOD)'s policy changed in April 2011 to recognise that use of pre-qualification questionnaires is generally unnecessary for low risk procurement valued below £100,000. For small and medium-sized enterprises in particular, this has provided easier access to Government contracts. Nevertheless, there will still be a small number of exceptional cases where the specific risks make pre-qualification questionnaires necessary, for instance where there is a need to ensure a minimum capability to protect highly classified information.

Training

Eilidh Whiteford: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many external training courses staff of his Department attended in the last 12 months; and what the cost to the public purse was of each course.

Andrew Robathan: Expenditure on external training for civilian staff was £23.490 million in financial year 2010-11.
	External training suppliers are used to delivering specialist and functional training required to enable personnel to fulfil their professional role, where such training cannot be delivered internally or through common arrangements with other Departments. Such areas include medical, legal, engineering and technical.
	The number and cost of individual training courses undertaken is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Depleted Uranium

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans he has for the provision of funding for research and development on the potential health implications for the general population arising from the use of depleted uranium.

Nick Harvey: There is already an extensive body of both Government and independent scientific research on the potential health and environmental risks of using depleted uranium in munitions. The Ministry of Defence has no plans to commission any further work in this area beyond maintaining a watching brief on related worldwide research activities.

European Fighter Aircraft

Menzies Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 5 September 2011, Official Report, column 84W, on European Fighter Aircraft, what estimate his Department has made of the cost to the public purse of transferring the Typhoon force from RAF Leuchars to RAF Lossiemouth by 2014.

Nick Harvey: holding answer 17 October 2011
	Detailed plans for the implementation of this transfer are still being developed and consequently the information is not available.

European Fighter Aircraft

Menzies Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 5 September 2011, Official Report, column 84W, on European Fighter Aircraft, whether his Department obtained a pre-sale valuation of the high value estate located in Edinburgh.

Andrew Robathan: holding answer 17 October 2011
	The Ministry of Defence does not routinely assess the current market value of all its estate because the estimated receipts will depend on market conditions and other factors at the time of sale. Where pre-sale valuations have been obtained, these are regarded as commercially confidential and are thus not released ahead of the sale in case they influence the market.

European Fighter Aircraft

Menzies Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the flying time is of Typhoon aircraft stationed at RAF Leuchars to each of the training ranges currently used; and what estimate he has made of the flying time of Typhoon aircraft to training ranges when that aircraft is stationed at RAF Lossiemouth.

Nick Harvey: holding answer 17 October 2011
	The table provides the distance and flying time from RAF Leuchars and RAF Lossiemouth to the most commonly used air-to-air, air-to-ground and electronic warfare ranges for the Scottish-based Typhoon fleet. Air-to-air range complexes can be very large, therefore the distance and flying time provided is to the approximate geographic centre of each range complex.
	The majority of Typhoon routine training sorties are currently conducted in D613 and D323 training areas. The distance from an operating base to a range area does not determine the overall training value of the sortie as other training objectives can be achieved while in transit.
	
		
			 Range complex Straight line distance from Leuchars (nautical miles) Flying time from Leuchars (Mach 0.7) (minutes) Straight line distance from Lossiemouth (nautical miles) Flying time from Lossiemouth (Mach 0.7) (minutes) 
			 Routine Air-to-Air     
			 D613 North sea 90 13 112 16 
			 D323 North sea 180 26 250 36 
			      
			 Electronic Warfare     
			 RAF Spadeadam 76 11 157 22 
			      
			 Air-to-Ground live weapons     
			 D703 Tain 95 14 22 3 
			 D803 Garvie Island 150 21 73 10 
			      
			 Air-to-Air live weapons     
			 D201 Aberporth 226 33 300 43

European Union

Patrick Mercer: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what his Department's policy is on the creation of an EU permanent operational headquarters.

Gerald Howarth: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 10 October 2011, Official Report, column 53W, to my hon. Friends the Members for Redditch (Karen Lumley) and for South West Wiltshire (Dr Murrison).

Ex-servicemen: Falkland Islands

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what support his Department is providing to veterans of the Falklands conflict.

Andrew Robathan: Ex-service personnel, including veterans from the Falklands conflict, have access to a wide range of support, including support from the Veterans' Welfare Service which is available to both veterans and their families.
	In addition, from 1 September 2008, the concessionary use of indulgence passages to the Falkland Islands on RAF or Ministry of Defence chartered aircraft has been available to veterans of the 1982 South Atlantic Conflict who have been awarded the South Atlantic Medal.
	In line with the Armed Forces Covenant, we will continue to develop the support available to all personnel during service and beyond working across Government and in partnership with the voluntary and community sectors.

Ex-servicemen: Falkland Islands

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what steps his Department is taking to (a) commemorate the 30th anniversary of the Falklands conflict and (b) support veterans of the conflict wishing to return to the Islands to mark the occasion.

Andrew Robathan: Following consultation with the relevant veterans groups, plans for the Ministry of Defence (MOD)'s involvement in commemorating the 30th anniversary of the Falkland Islands conflict are well advanced. The MOD will provide assistance and support to organised events marking the 30th anniversary. For example, there will be armed forces participation in an event to dedicate a new Falklands memorial at the National Memorial Arboretum.
	From 1 September 2008, the concessionary use of indulgence passages to the Falkland Islands via the airbridge on Royal Air Force or MOD chartered aircraft has been available to veterans (service and civilian) of the 1982 South Atlantic conflict who have been awarded the South Atlantic Medal.
	The scheme is sponsored and administered by the South Atlantic Medal Association 1982 (SAMA 82) to whom all applications for, and inquiries about, travel under this concessionary scheme should be submitted. Applicants do not have to be members of the association in order to participate.

Ex-servicemen: Falkland Islands

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what steps his Department has taken to discuss the 30th anniversary of the Falklands conflict with veterans of the conflict.

Andrew Robathan: Falklands conflict veteran groups have been widely consulted during the development of plans to mark the 30th anniversary of the Falklands conflict.

Ex-servicemen: Military Decorations

Eilidh Whiteford: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what progress has been made on the production of a medal for veterans of the Arctic convoys.

Andrew Robathan: I refer the hon. Member to the reply given by the Government Spokesperson, my noble Friend, Lord De Mauley to my noble Friend, Lord Ashcroft, on 3 October 2011, Official Report, House of Lords, column WA96.

Ex-servicemen: Teachers

Michael Fallon: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what steps his Department is taking to encourage former service personnel to become teachers.

Andrew Robathan: holding answer 13 October 2011
	The Schools White Paper 2010, The Importance of Teaching, outlined the coalition Government's commitment to encouraging armed forces leavers to become teachers and to work in schools as mentors. We are working closely with the Department for Education, the lead Government Department, to develop and implement this initiative.
	Currently, service leavers are encouraged to attend resettlement careers fairs, organised for the armed forces as part of their resettlement programme. The Training Development Agency for Schools are regular attendees who provide specialist advice on routes into teaching.

Guided Weapons: Military Aircraft

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the Talon Laser Guided Rocket for use on the Apache helicopter.

Peter Luff: The Apache helicopter is armed with a range of weapon systems which fulfil all the capability requirements of the platform for Operations HERRICK and ELLAMY. Therefore, there is no current requirement for a Laser Guided Rocket system such as Talon. However, regular assessments of potential weapon systems are conducted to inform future capability requirements.

Gulf War Syndrome

Bob Ainsworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what research his Department plans to commission on Gulf War illnesses up to 2015.

Stephen Phillips: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether his Department plans to conduct further epidemiological studies on the health of those involved in Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm.

Andrew Robathan: holding answer 17 October 2011
	The Ministry of Defence (MOD) has no plans to conduct further, specific studies into the health of those involved in Operation Desert Shield and Desert Storm although we will continue to monitor any other Gulf research that is published round the world.
	The UK and the USA have undertaken a substantial amount of research into Gulf veterans' illness. The research has indicated that there is no illness which is specific to Gulf veterans.
	Mortality statistics will continue to be published by the MOD's Defence Analytical Services and Advice organisation and copies will be placed in the Library of the House. The latest report shows there are no statistically significant differences in the total number of deaths between Gulf veterans and a comparison group or for any of the main groups of cause of death.
	The MOD has funded work by Cardiff university which identified a range of potential interventions to help rehabilitate ill Gulf veterans. The MOD is facilitating discussions between Cardiff university and the voluntary and charitable sector to see if this work can be developed further.

Guy’s and St Thomas NHS Trust

Bob Ainsworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what future (a) funding provision and (b) staffing structure he has set for the Medical Assessment Centre at St Thomas’ hospital in London.

Andrew Robathan: The Medical Assessment Programme (MAP) is currently being staffed by a consultant psychiatrist with administrative support. An additional £65,000 has been allocated for costs such as rent, patient travel and subsistence costs, office equipment and consumables.
	The Department of Health is currently rolling out improved mental health services for veterans. These changes will allow veterans better access to more local services. We will continue to monitor future demand for the MAP in the light of these changes and to provide appropriate resources as long as they are needed. There are no plans to discontinue the MAP service.

Joint Supply Chain Services Group

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether he plans any future sale of the components of the Joint Supply Chain Services group.

Peter Luff: Defence Equipment and Support's Logistic Commodities and Services group is currently developing a transformation programme which will consider a number of options. These may include the sale or outsourcing of some of its component parts but no decisions have yet been made.

Libya: Armed Conflict

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  how many (a) Paveway II bombs, (b) Paveway IV bombs, (c) Dual Mode Brimstone missiles, (d) Hellfire missiles, (e) 30mm cannon rounds, (f) CRV7 rockets and (h) Tomahawk land attack missiles have been used in Operation Ellamy to date;
	(2)  how many 4.5 inch shells of each munitions type have been fired from Royal Navy vessels in Operation Ellamy to date.

Nick Harvey: From the start of current operations in Libya to 6 October 2011, UK forces have employed some 1,470 precision guided munitions, 110 direct fire weapons, 4,100 rounds of direct fire 30 mm cannon rounds and around 240 high explosive or illumination rounds from 4.5 inch naval guns. We carefully select the type of weapon in every engagement to ensure the most appropriate munition is used to deliver the required effect, while minimising the risk of civilian casualties.
	The precision guided munitions used include Dual Mode Seeker Brimstone, Enhanced Paveway II, Paveway IV, Storm Shadow missiles and Tomahawk Land Attack missiles. Direct fire munitions include Hellfire missiles and CRV-7 rockets.
	I am withholding the detailed breakdown of individual weapons types expended as its disclosure would, or would be likely to, prejudice the capability, effectiveness or security of the armed forces.

Military Aircraft

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much he expects to be saved in (a) Resource departmental expenditure limit, (b) Capital DEL, (c) annually-managed expenditure and (d) in total by (i) withdrawing Sentinel R.1 from service between 2015 and 2020, (ii) not taking Shadow R.1 into permanent RAF service between 2015 and 2020, (iii) not taking Reaper unmanned aerial vehicle into permanent RAF service between 2012 and 2020, (iv) delaying the entry into service of the F-35 until 2020, (v) changing the joint combat aircraft variant from F-35B to F-35C and (vi) capping the number of Typhoon aircraft in service at 107 between 2015 and 2020.

Peter Luff: Following the strategic defence and security review (SDSR), we announced the decision to withdraw Sentinel R.1 from service once it is no longer required for operations in Afghanistan. This decision is assumed for planning purposes to save approximately £320 million in cash resource DEL and £190 million in capital DEL over the next 10 years.
	The Department has no current plans to take Shadow R1 or Reaper into permanent RAF service, and therefore no savings would result.
	A number of changes were made to the Joint Combat Aircraft programme during the SDSR and planning round 2010-11, including the change of variant from the F-35B to the F-35C and the decision to introduce it into service in time to enable the delivery of a Carrier Strike capability in around 2020. We expect savings to arise from the delayed in-service date and from the lower unit price acquisition costs and through-life support costs of the F-35C compared with the F-35B. The precise value of these savings remains subject to further work.
	The Department has no plans to cap the number of Typhoon aircraft in service at 107 between 2015 and 2020.
	None of these measures are expected to have a direct impact on the Department's annually managed expenditure.

Military Bases

Alistair Darling: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  what discussions he plans to have with (a) City of Edinburgh Council and (b) West Lothian Council on the development of military accommodation at Kirkliston Airfield;
	(2)  what discussions he plans to have with the City of Edinburgh Council in relation to (a) the disposal of Dreghorn and Redford Barracks and (b) a planning brief for both sites; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Robathan: holding answer 15 September 2011
	Work on the planned re-basing of armed forces personnel from Germany to Scotland remains at an early stage. It is too early at present to say precisely how the sites will be used. Detailed planning work will now be undertaken, led by the Defence Infrastructure Organisation in conjunction with the Army and Royal Air Force. This work will involve the appropriate and necessary engagement with other Government Departments, the Devolved Administrations and local authorities. Work will involve a comprehensive assessment of issues such as impact on schools, health care, etc. and the broader local economy and environment.

Military Bases

Michael Crockart: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what (a) learning or education, (b) exercise and (c) other facilities are planned for the new base at Kirknewton.

Nick Harvey: Comprehensive planning work is now under way to draw up detailed plans for the future of Kirknewton. However it is too early at this time to say precisely what facilities, including those for learning, education, or for exercise are planned for the base.

Military Bases

Michael Crockart: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether he expects the Royal Military Police based at Edinburgh Castle to be moved as part of the outcome of the basing review; and where they will be based after any such move.

Nick Harvey: The announcement made by the previous Secretary of State for Defence, my right hon. Friend the Member for North Somerset (Dr Fox), on 18 July 2011, Official Report, columns 643-45, set out our strategic long-term direction on the structure of the Army and its basing requirements across the United Kingdom. Comprehensive planning work is now under way to draw up plans for the timing and sequencing of these changes within the Army.
	Until this work is complete and further detail is known about the size and type of units that will be required to support the future Army lay down in Scotland, it is too soon to confirm how this will affect individual units or indeed to confirm where they will reside in the future.

Military Bases

Michael Crockart: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  what assessment he has made of the likely effects on service families of movement of service children between Scottish and English education systems following the outcome of the basing review;
	(2)  what assessment he has made of the likely effects of the outcome of the basing review on the (a) capacity, (b) costs and (c) operation of the Queen Victoria School in Dunblane.

Andrew Robathan: There has, to date, been no specific assessment of the effect of the outcome of the basing review on the capacity, costs and operation of the Queen Victoria School (QVS), or on the likely effects of movement of service children between Scottish and English education systems.
	Until the more detailed work arising from the basing review is complete, it is too soon to be able to assess any such resultant effects. However, the Ministry of Defence (MOD) is represented at the Scottish Service Children Stakeholders' Network (SCSN), a forum led by the Scottish Directorate for Learning and supported by local authorities, schools, the services, schools inspectorate, and the independent sector. We recognise this as a potential issue and are in a position to highlight any issues or concerns.
	I can confirm that QVS is currently undergoing an internal review, working closely with Her Majesty's Commissioners at the school and the Service Children's Education Agency to ensure that the school remains viable and continues to play a part in providing support for the families of service personnel. The work will include looking at the infrastructure of the school, ensuring adequate provision of educational support and also reviewing the administrative function within the MOD to benefit the school. This will take into account the changes within the Defence environment in Scotland.

Military Bases

Michael Crockart: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what estimate he has made of the amount of service family accommodation which will be required under the proposed new employment model in (a) Edinburgh and (b) Scotland by 2020.

Andrew Robathan: No such assessment has yet been made. Work on the new employment model (NEM) programme is under way and is examining all areas of terms and conditions of service for our personnel. Within this programme is a future accommodation project (FAP) which is addressing single and family accommodation, with the aim to balance the future needs of the service with the aspirations of service personnel for affordable and good quality housing.

Military Bases

Michael Crockart: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what work will be required to be completed at RAF Lossiemouth to enable Typhoons to be based there; and what recent estimate he has made of the date by which such work will be completed.

Andrew Robathan: Initial scoping work during the strategic defence and security review identified a number of options to make RAF Lossiemouth ready to support Typhoon operations. More detailed planning is currently being undertaken and the options will be subject to an investment appraisal to ensure that the best value for money solution is identified for defence. Completion dates are dependent on the outcome of the planning process.

Military Bases

Michael Crockart: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans his Department has for the future of the Castlelaw/Dreghorn training area following the outcome of the basing review.

Andrew Robathan: It is too early to say at this time what the future of the Castlelaw/Dreghorn training area may be. A full assessment of the facilities needed to deliver the training requirement will be undertaken once the current basing review work is completed.

Military Bases

Michael Crockart: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans his Department has for the provision of information services to military personnel from Edinburgh, Stirling, Glasgow and elsewhere following the sale of Dreghorn Barracks and closure of Edinburgh HIVE.

Andrew Robathan: The Secretary of State for Defence's announcement on 18 July 2011, Official Report, columns 643-645, set out our strategic long-term direction on the structure of the Army and its basing requirements across the United Kingdom. Comprehensive planning work is now under way to draw up plans for the timing and sequencing of these changes within the Army and to consider the infrastructure and services necessary to support those units and personnel who will be based in Scotland.
	Until this work is complete and further detail is known about the size and type of units that will be required to support the future Army lay down in Scotland, it is too soon to confirm how this will affect individual units or indeed to confirm where they will reside in the future. This will in turn affect the provision of information services to service personnel and their families. No decisions have currently been made on the future of the Edinburgh HIVE.

Military Bases

Michael Crockart: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence with reference to his Department's Strategic Defence and Security Review, what assessment his Department has made of the (a) personnel capacity and (b) potential for expansion of Glencorse Barracks, Glencorse HIVE and associated facilities.

Andrew Robathan: Comprehensive planning work is now under way to draw up detailed plans for the future of Glencorse Barracks, which will include an assessment of the site's personnel capacity and potential for expansion.
	HIVEs provide information services for military personnel and their dependants. The information they provide includes local unit and civilian facilities, places of interest, schools and further education, housing, health care facilities, employment and training opportunities. They are also able to provide a referral service to other agencies and engage with the local authorities and communities. The HIVEs provided by the Army are part of the Army Welfare Service.
	It is too early to say at this time what the future of the Glencorse HIVE and its associated facilities may be. A full assessment will only be undertaken once the current basing work is completed.

Military Bases

Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many accommodation units there are for personnel serving in the (a) RAF, (b) Royal Navy and (c) Army at bases in the UK; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Robathan: Service accommodation is a tri-service asset and is not assigned to any particular branch of the armed services. There are currently 49,122 service family accommodation properties in the UK. As at 10 October 2011, there were 131,104 single living accommodation bedspaces in the UK.

Military Bases

Michael Crockart: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the possible effect on the market values of his Department's Craigiehall, Dreghorn and Redford sites of all three sites being put up for sale at the same time.

Andrew Robathan: A disposals strategy for Craigiehall, Dreghorn and Redford has not yet been agreed, but the initial assessment has assumed a phased disposal of these sites in order to optimise value.

Military Bases: Scotland

Michael Crockart: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the maintenance costs were of empty service family accommodation in (a) Edinburgh and (b) Scotland in each of the last five years.

Andrew Robathan: Maintenance of void properties includes both response and pre-planned maintenance, statutory inspections, grounds maintenance, communal areas, void preparation and other associated costs. These costs are shown in the following table:
	
		
			 £ million 
			 (October-September) Scotland including Edinburgh Edinburgh only 
			 2005-06 1.41 0.24 
			 2006-07 1.47 0.29 
			 2007-08 1.38 0.20 
			 2008-09 1.26 0.22 
			 2009-10 1.36 0.27 
		
	
	Figures for the year ending September 2011 are not yet available.
	Properties are void for various reasons. For example, they are awaiting routine moves of service personnel, improvement or modernisation work. The Ministry of Defence will always be required to maintain a management margin of void properties to ensure that homes are available for entitled service families when required.

Military Bases: Scotland

Michael Crockart: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what proportion of service family accommodation is empty in (a) Edinburgh and (b) Scotland.

Andrew Robathan: As at 10 October 2011 the position is as follows:
	
		
			  Number/percentage 
			 Number of service family accommodation (SFA) in Scotland including Edinburgh 3,628 
			   
			 Number of void SFA in Scotland including Edinburgh 715 
			 Percentage 21.8 
			   
			 Number of SFA in Edinburgh only 757 
			   
			 Number of void SFA in Edinburgh only 105 
			 Percentage 13.9 
		
	
	Properties are void for various reasons, such as they are awaiting routine moves of service personnel, improvement or modernisation work, demolition or disposal. The Ministry of Defence will always be required to hold a number of void properties to ensure that homes for entitled service families are available when required.

Ministry of Defence Police and Guarding Agency

Iain McKenzie: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the potential effects of changes to the Ministry of Defence Police budget on its ability to police and secure his Department's estates; and if he will make a statement;

Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans he has for the future of the Ministry of Defence Police as an armed waterborne security force at HM Dockyards;

Andrew Robathan: holding answer 12 October 2011
	Following the comprehensive spending review and the strategic defence and security review, consideration has been given to a range of options that will determine the Department's future requirement for the services and capabilities provided by the Ministry of Defence (MOD) Police. These resources will focus on those areas where civil policing powers can best mitigate the crime and security risks faced by the MOD. These options are currently the subject of formal consultation with the relevant staff associations and trades unions, and as such it would be inappropriate to go into specific detail at this stage.

Ministry of Defence Police and Guarding Agency

Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what recent assessment he has made of the skills (a) that the training of Ministry of Defence Police confers and (b) provided by privately trained security personnel.

Andrew Robathan: The Ministry of Defence (MOD) police officers are trained to national police standards and enjoy the full range of constabulary powers within their permitted jurisdiction. The requirement for MOD police services and capabilities is therefore focused on those areas of defence business where the availability of civil policing powers can best mitigate the crime and security risks faced by the MOD.
	Any private sector company awarded a contract to provide unarmed guarding services at a defence establishment must have a training programme in place that ensures a mandated minimum level of training for all guards in order to deliver the level of service required. This training is augmented by local induction training and relevant site familiarisation training specific to the duties being undertaken. All commercial guards employed at defence sites must be licensed in accordance with Security Industry Association regulations. In addition, and within nine months of the award of an MOD guarding contract, at least 30% of the guards employed must possess a relevant National or Scottish Vocational Qualification.

Ministry of Defence Police and Guarding Agency

Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what specialist roles in relation to the UK nuclear deterrent are carried out by the Ministry of Defence Police; and what plans he has for their future.

Andrew Robathan: The Ministry of Defence (MOD) requires the MOD police to maintain a range of specialist policing capabilities in order to ensure the secure and uninterrupted operation of the UK's strategic nuclear deterrent.

Ministry of Defence Police and Guarding Agency

Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the Ministry of Defence Police's Criminal Investigation Department in (a) preventing terrorism, (b) discovering security breaches, (c) investigating fraud and (d) gathering intelligence; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Robathan: The Ministry of Defence police (MOD) Criminal Investigation Department (CID) is subject to scrutiny by a number of statutory bodies, who also comment upon the force's effectiveness. In 2010 an inspection of the force's major crime capability, and public order (focusing on protestor activity), was conducted by Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary. In 2011 the Office of Surveillance Commissioners undertook a review of aspects of the force's intelligence gathering. In addition the independent MOD police committee routinely receives a summary of fraud and significant crime inquiries investigated by the CID, and subsequent financial recoveries.

Ministry of Defence Police and Guarding Agency

Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence on how many occasions the Ministry of Defence Police have been deployed overseas (a) in support of military operations by HM Forces and (b) on training missions in the last five years.

Andrew Robathan: The following table shows the occasions on which Ministry of Defence police officers have been deployed overseas in the last five years, their locations and the tasks they have undertaken.
	
		
			 Location Period of time Mission Task 
			 Afghanistan (Op Herrick) Ongoing Provincial Reconstruction Team—Rule of Law (MOD Support 2 Operations) Mentoring and Training 
			 Afghanistan Ongoing NATO Training Mission European Policing (EUPOL) Senior Police Advisers—Training 
			 Kosovo Ongoing Foreign and Commonwealth Office (F&CO) United Nations Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK) and European Mission in Kosovo (EULEX) Executive Policing, Monitoring Mentoring and Training 
			 Iraq (Op Telic) Until 2009 F&CO International Secondment Team (IST) Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) Senior Police Advisors Mentoring and Training 
			 Jordan Until December 2006 F&CO IST (CPA) Training 
			 Sierra Leone March to October 2007 F&CO IST Monitoring 
			 Sudan Until December 2007 F&CO IST (African Union) Senior Police Advisor—Mentoring 
			 Kenya September 2008 (4 weeks) F&CO IST (African Union) Training 
			 Georgia Ongoing F&CO Stabilisation Unit (SU) and European Union Policing Monitoring Mission (EUPMM) Monitoring 
			 Bosnia Until June 2006 F&CO IST-EUPMM Monitoring 
			 Occupied Palestinian Territories May 2010 to May2011 Department for International Development (DFID) Senior Police Advisor 
			 Pitcairn Until February 2007 F&CO IST and Home Office Community Support 
			 Diego Garcia November 2007 to January 2008 F&CO IST Community Support and Monitoring

MOD St Athan

Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what services and facilities are available for injured armed forces personnel at MOD St Athan; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Robathan: Services and facilities available for injured armed forces personnel at Ministry of Defence St Athan are as follows:
	A combined primary care rehabilitation facility and regional rehabilitation unit for physiotherapy and group-based exercise therapy for service personnel working and living in South Wales.
	A combined medical and dental centre for general practice and dental treatment.
	Motor transport to take patients to hospital appointments.
	Sports facilities including fitness suites and three gymnasia run by uniformed physical education staff.
	A contractual arrangement with Fontegary Leisure Park giving all patients at the rehabilitation facilities access to exclusive sessions in the swimming pool.
	Accommodation and messing for service personnel permanently based at MOD St Athan or visiting on temporary duty.
	Two service houses adapted for allocation to service personnel with special needs and disabilities.

NATO: Military Exercises

Angus MacNeil: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (a) when and (b) from what location the global positioning system was disabled in UK waters during the NATO joint Warrior Exercise 112.

Andrew Robathan: holding answer 13 October 2011
	Temporary jamming is routinely practised in military exercises as an essential part of preparation for operations. Global positioning system jamming during exercise Joint Warrior 112 took place at various publicised time slots between 4 to 10 October 2011 and was limited to Faraid Head and Loch Ewe sites (which have been used historically to site this capability).
	Full details were notified in June to mandated authorities, including the Civil Aviation Authority, the Maritime and Coastguard Agency and the Scottish Government. Each event was closely co-ordinated with local Coastguard authorities who transmitted appropriate warning broadcasts on the mandatory VHF channels throughout the period. The jamming sites themselves also transmitted warnings on VHF before commencement and on completion of each serial. In addition, information booklets were provided on 7 September to local fishing associations, ferry operators and other interested parties making clear to all mariners the authorities to contact for further information.

RAF Lossiemouth

Menzies Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what date he has set for RAF Lossiemouth to undertake northern quick reaction alert duties.

Nick Harvey: holding answer 17 October 2011
	No decisions have yet been made on the exact date of transfer for Northern Quick Reaction Alert duties between RAF Leuchars and RAF Lossiemouth.

Royal Fleet Auxiliary

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  pursuant to the answer to the right hon. Member for Mid Sussex (Mr Soames) of 15 September 2011, Official Report, columns 1300-01W, on the Navy, what the Order of Battle was for the Royal Fleet Auxiliary on 7 September of each of the last three years;
	(2)  how many redundancy notices have been issued to Royal Fleet Auxiliary personnel since May 2010; and how many were (a) compulsory and (b) voluntary;
	(3)  what estimate has been made of the number of Royal Fleet Auxiliary personnel that will be (a) employed and (b) made redundant in (i) 2012-13, (ii) 2013-14 and (iii) 2014-15.

Nick Harvey: The Order of Battle for the Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA) for the three years prior to 2011 remained the same in each year and was as follows:
	
		
			 2008-10 
			  Number 
			 Fleet tankers 2 
			 Support tankers 2 
			 Small fleet tankers 2 
			 Fleet replenishment ships 4 
			 Landing ship dock 4 
			 Aviation training ship 1 
			 Forward repair ship 1 
		
	
	RFA personnel have been offered compensation terms as per the Ministry of Defence Voluntary Early Release Scheme (2011). This is an ongoing process, but as of 11 October 2011, 238 RFA personnel have been accepted for release by the end of March 2012. There are currently no plans for any compulsory redundancies for RFA personnel.
	The manpower projections for the RFA for the next three years are as follows:
	
		
			 Personnel 
			  Number 
			 2012-13 1,973 
			 2013-14 1,934 
			 2014-15 1,911

Service Pupil Premium

Michael Crockart: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what discussions his Department has had with the Scottish Government on the introduction of the service pupil premium for service children attending maintained schools in England.

Andrew Robathan: Ministry of Defence officials are in regular contact with the Scottish Government. Where matters are devolved, such as education, the devolved Governments will take forward measures which reflect the different legislative landscape and the way in which their public services are delivered.

Territorial Army

Michael Crockart: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  with reference to his Department's Strategic Defence and Security Review, what proportion of the increase in the size of the Territorial Army will be based in Edinburgh; and what plans his Department has made to accommodate this increase;
	(2)  what the strength is of the Territorial Army; and with reference to his Department's Strategic Defence and Security Review, what assessment he has made of the strength which will be required by 2020;
	(3)  what assessment has been made of the capacity of the Territorial Army estate in and around Edinburgh to accommodate the estimated rises in Territorial Army numbers proposed in his Department's Strategic Defence and Security Review.

Nick Harvey: As of 1 September 2011, the total strength of the Territorial Army (TA) was 30,210.
	The previous Secretary of State for Defence, my right hon. Friend the Member for North Somerset (Dr Fox), announced the publication of the Future Reserves 2020 study (FR20) to the House on 18 July 2011, Official Report, columns 643-65. The FR20 Commission made recommendations that include: the need to take urgent action to stabilise the TA; consideration of new roles for Reservists; adjustments to the balance between Regular and Reserves and recommendations on enablement, force generation and governance. The Government will make a formal response to Parliament regarding the recommendations soon, and until this has been completed, I cannot comment further on the implications.

Territorial Army

Michael Crockart: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what proportion of the Territorial Army is made up of regular attendees.

Andrew Robathan: As at 1 April 2011, there were 20,333 trained officers and soldiers in the Territorial Army, of whom 16,272 were regular attendees.
	For the purpose of this question, “regular attendees” have been deemed to be those personnel who have been paid for attending at least one drill night or annual camp within the last six months. This excludes officers and soldiers under initial training, those in the Officer Training Corps and Sponsored Reserves.

Territorial Army

Michael Crockart: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  what plans he has to provide incentives for large employers to promote membership of the Territorial Army to their employees;
	(2)  what plans he has to assist small and medium-sized companies to enable their staff to be members of the Territorial Army.

Andrew Robathan: Many different types of incentives exist to encourage employers to support and promote their employees' membership of the Volunteer Reserve Forces. The most relevant and enduring is the articulation of accredited transferable skills, gained from reservist service, which contribute to staff development in businesses of all sizes.
	Since April 2005 a simple and effective scheme has been in place, which enables employers to apply for financial assistance to cover certain costs of replacing a Reservist employee if they are mobilised.
	Following the announcement by the previous Secretary of State for Defence, my right hon. Friend the Member for North Somerset (Dr Fox), on 18 July 2011, Official Report, columns 643-45, the Ministry of Defence (MOD) has continued to engage with employers and has commissioned an independent qualitative research project, in order to better understand the views of employers. Further research will confirm which type of employer support activities are most suitable, to help increase an employer's support for his employees to become members of the Reserve Forces.
	To further support employers in overcoming any difficulties they may have with employing a Reservist, understanding legislation and learning more about the transferable skills gained from reservist service, the MOD sponsors the SaBRE (Supporting Britain's Reservists and Employers) Campaign.

Territorial Army: Manpower

Michael Crockart: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many Territorial Army members were recruited in 2010-11.

Andrew Robathan: A total of 145 Territorial Army officers and 4,771 Territorial Army other ranks were recruited during financial year 2010-11.

Third Sector

Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much funding provided by his Department to the third sector has been spent in Wales to provide services and facilities to injured and sick (a) serving armed forces personnel and (b) veterans in the latest period for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement.

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much direct funding his Department provided to each civil society organisation it funded in (a) 2010-11 and (b) 2011-12; how much he expects to provide in (i) 2012-13, (ii) 2013-14 and (iii) 2014-15; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Robathan: I refer the hon. Members to the answer I gave on 7 June 2011, Official Report, columns 26-28W, to the hon. Member for the Vale of Clwyd (Chris Ruane).
	Since 2008 the Ministry of Defence has not collected estimates of regional expenditure on equipment, non-equipment, or personnel costs as they do not directly support policy making or operations and therefore information on funding provided to the voluntary, community and social enterprise sector in Wales is not available.

Unmanned Air Vehicles

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  from which locations his Department operates its Hermes 450 system;
	(2)  where the Hermes 450 system is deployed.

Andrew Robathan: holding answer 17 October 2011
	The Hermes 450 system is deployed in Afghanistan where it is operated by 32 Regiment Royal Artillery, and 47 Regiment Royal Artillery. The system is only operated in theatre.

Unmanned Air Vehicles

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  whether he expects the current arrangements with Israel in respect of the Hermes 450 system to continue until the deployment of the Watchkeeper;
	(2)  for what reasons the deployment of the Watchkeeper did not take place in July 2010;
	(3)  whether the Hermes 450 leased from Israel is certified to the same airworthiness standard as a military manned aircraft.

Peter Luff: holding answer 17 October 2011
	The service provision contract with Thales UK for the delivery of the Hermes 450 unmanned air system will continue until Watchkeeper enters service. Hermes 450 is certified to the same airworthiness regulatory standards as military manned aircraft.
	Watchkeeper has passed a number of significant milestones including software development, integration, operator and maintainer training, and is currently concluding flight trials in the UK. Technical issues encountered during software integration, and the requirement for troops to have more time to train with this new capability before fielding on operations, led us to revise our forecast of initial deployment of Watchkeeper to the first quarter of 2012.

USA: Hawk Aircraft

David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the cost will be in total for two Royal Air Force Hawk fighter jets on tour in the US; and whether his Department will recover those costs from BAE Systems.

Nick Harvey: The two Hawk T2 aircraft have been leased to BAE Systems, Inc. All costs associated with the lease of the aircraft and RAF personnel will be met by the company. No costs will fall to the UK taxpayer.

TRANSPORT

A17

Stephen Phillips: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what plans her Department has to develop proposals for the dualling of the A17 between Newark and Sleaford.

Norman Baker: This stretch of the A17 is the responsibility of Lincolnshire county council and Nottinghamshire county council. It is for the councils concerned to develop proposals to dual this road if they wish to do so.

Blue Badge Scheme

Jason McCartney: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if she will introduce fixed-term blue badges for people who have a temporary disability following an accident.

Norman Baker: I recognise the case made for assisting those with severe short-term mobility problems, but have to weigh this against the consequences of an extension to the Blue Badge scheme on existing disabled badge holders and on the local authorities who administer and enforce the scheme. I am currently considering the costs and benefits of a number of possible approaches to this issue and I will make a decision on it later this year.

British Rail

Matthew Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the cost to the public purse was of all payments made and benefits in kind given to former employees of British Rail in each year since 1997.

Norman Baker: There are historic obligations imposed on the Department for Transport since 1980 in relation to pensions and travel concessions for former employees of British Rail. The annual level of support payments for historic pension obligations is on average £11.9 million. The cost of providing historic travel concessions is in the order of £2.9 million per annum.
	Some current staff, who transferred to the Department for Transport following the abolition of the Strategic Rail Authority in 2005 receive retained travel facilities. The cost since 2008 is as follows:
	
		
			  £ 
			 2008-09 33,846.10 
			 2009-10 36,224.99 
			 2010-11 38,034.78 
		
	
	Information for the period 2005-08 could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Bus Services: Contracts

Brandon Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what information her Department holds on the number of bus quality contracts that have been issued by (a) his Department and (b) local authorities since 2000.

Norman Baker: Bus Quality Contract schemes are made by local authorities. Since the Local Transport Act 2008 came into effect in 2009, the Secretary of State no longer approves schemes and has no role in their making.
	The Department understands that no Quality Contract schemes have yet been made.

Crossrail Line: Rolling Stock

Louise Ellman: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what weighting she expects to give to the credit rating of bidders in the procurement of rolling stock for Crossrail.

Theresa Villiers: The procurement of the Crossrail rolling stock is being undertaken by Crossrail Limited on behalf of the two sponsors, Transport for London and the Department for Transport. The procurement is under way with invitation to tender documentation and evaluation criteria currently being developed by Crossrail Limited.
	The evaluation criteria have yet to be finalised but, as has been the case in previous large transport procurements following the prequalification process, it is unlikely that the underlying parent company credit ratings will be specifically scored.

Sick Leave

Mike Freer: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport for how many days on average her Department's staff in each pay grade were absent from work as a result of ill health in 2010-11.

Norman Baker: The central Department and its agencies recorded the following in respect of staff sickness absence during the 2010-11 financial year:
	
		
			 Staff sickness: 1 April 2010 to 31 March 2011 
			 Grade Average working days lost 
			 AA 8.6 
			 AO 8.2 
			 EO 9.1 
			 HEO 5.5 
			 SEO 4.5 
			 G7 5.1 
			 G6 4.2 
			 SCS 1.5 
			 Average working days lost per staff year 7.7 
			 Total staff employed in period 19,718 
		
	
	These figures are calculated according to guidance provided by the Cabinet Office, to whom we report on a quarterly basis.

Gatwick Airport Station

Louise Ellman: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport for what reasons she has rejected the request from Southern Railways to vary its franchise so that it is not obliged to install gates at Gatwick Airport Station; and if she will make a statement.

Norman Baker: I have concluded that the proposal is not sensible for the Department as it does not support either the general principle of Sir Roy McNulty's review in getting cost out of the industry nor the specific finding on the introduction of gating and realising the potential of Great British rail.
	The proposal is also contrary to the simplification of fares and could inhibit opportunities for smartcard ticketing.

Large Goods Vehicles: Accidents

Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many motorcyclists have (a) incurred injuries and (b) been killed in a road traffic accident involving a heavy goods vehicle in each of the last five years.

Michael Penning: The number of motorcyclists injured in reported personal injury road accidents involving heavy goods vehicles in Great Britain, in each of the last five years is given in the following table:
	
		
			 Reported motorcyclist casualties in personal injury road  a ccidents invol ving heavy goods vehicles in GB,  2006- 1 0 
			  Injured (1) Killed 
			 2006 470 55 
			 2007 478 49 
			 2008 422 51 
			 2009 355 31 
			 2010 325 32 
			 (1) Includes serious and slight injuries.

Parking: Fines

Eilidh Whiteford: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what recent consideration she has given to amending legislation to allow local authorities access to overseas driver and vehicle registration data to enable the enforcement of parking fines.

Michael Penning: No consideration has recently been given to amending legislation to allow local authorities access to overseas driver and vehicle registration data for the enforcement of parking fines. For matters relating to cross-border co-operation to be effective, there would need to be reciprocal arrangements co-ordinated by the European Union.

Procurement: Questionnaires

Julian Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what progress her Department has made in eliminating pre-qualification questionnaires for procurements with a value of under £100,000.

Norman Baker: The Department has issued instructions that eliminate the use of pre-qualification questionnaires for procurements below £100,000.

Railways: Ipswich

Daniel Poulter: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what information her Department holds on the number of single rail journeys made between Ipswich and London Liverpool Street Station in each year since 2001.

Norman Baker: The Department for Transport does not hold this information. National Express East Anglia operates the services between Ipswich and London Liverpool Street. They can be contacted at the following address:
	National Express East Anglia
	Norwich Railway Station
	Station Approach
	Norwich
	NR1 1EF
	Tel: 0845 600 7245
	Statistics showing the annual numbers of passengers entering, exiting and interchanging at each station on the rail network are published by the Office of Rail Regulation (ORR), although these do not identify the origins or destinations of these passengers. This can be found on the ORR website at the following link:
	http://www.rail-reg.gov.uk/server/show/nav.1529

Roads: Severe Weather

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether she plans to maintain the number of winter treatment routes in the area 10 network.

Michael Penning: The Highways Agency will maintain the same number of winter treatment routes during winter 2011-12 as in winter 2010-11, for the geographical area known as area 10. For winter 2012-13, the Highways Agency will have a new maintenance contract for area 10, and although the number of treated routes may change, the level of winter service will remain unchanged.

Roads: Construction

William Bain: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  if she will assess the capacity of the private sector to provide capital for the building of roads in place of the public sector;
	(2)  whether her Department is considering raising financial contributions for the building of roads from private companies.

Michael Penning: The Department is keen to find opportunities for private investment to support improvement in the road network.
	The Department assesses that significant capacity exists in the private sector to provide capital for road building if the conditions for investment are right.

Roads: Motor Vehicles

Alun Cairns: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what recent assessment has been made through roadside checks of levels of compliance with legal requirements relating to weights, condition of vehicles and driver's hours; and how often roadside checks are carried out.

Michael Penning: In addition to its routine targeted checks of heavy vehicles that the Vehicle and Operator Services Agency (VOSA) conducts, it conducts specific roadside checks to determine compliance levels. These are conducted every second year for each type of vehicle.
	The latest results (2010) are summarised as follows—showing the percentage of vehicles that were found compliant—ie offences were not found.
	
		
			 Percentage 
			  Vehicle condition  
			  Vehicle Trailer Traffic—including drivers’ hours and weight 
			 GB HGV 75.7 79.3 85.3 
			 Non-GB HGV 70.3 65.9 83.6 
		
	
	VOSA conducted the following number of targeted roadside checks in the last three years;
	
		
			  Number 
			 2010-11(1) 276,124 
			 2009-10 313,625 
			 2008-09 225,410 
			 (1) Figures are taken from VOSA’s draft 2010-11 Effectiveness report which will be published shortly. Older versions are available from http://www.dft.gov.uk/vosa/publications/corporatereports/corporatereports.htm 
		
	
	Please note VOSA holds data on the number of tests rather than the number of vehicles, vehicles can be tested for more than one item at the roadside.

Rolling Stock: Procurement

Louise Ellman: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether she has provided guidance to Bombardier to assist them in bidding for future rolling stock procurement contracts tendered by her Department.

Theresa Villiers: The Department cannot give specific guidance to manufacturers while they are bidding for contracts as to do so would bias the competitive tendering process.

Thameslink: Rolling Stock

Louise Ellman: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the determining factors were in the selection of Siemens as preferred bidder for the Thameslink contract; and if she will make a statement.

Theresa Villiers: The evaluation criteria are contained in the Thameslink Rolling Stock Project Invitation to Tender dated 27 November 2008. A copy is available on the DFT website:
	http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/+/http://www.dft.gov.uk/pgr/rail/pi/thameslinkrollingstock/itt/invitation.pdf

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

Afghanistan: Females

Jo Swinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps his Department will take to ensure the proper representation of women at the International Afghanistan Conference in Bonn in December 2011.

Alistair Burt: We have made clear that it is important that women participate as fully as possible in the political process in Afghanistan. We are following closely the preparations for civil society participation in Bonn which are being led by the Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission. We welcome the work of the Afghan Women's Network to co-ordinate roundtable discussions between Afghan officials and civil society in the run up to the conference.
	We continue to work closely with the Government of Afghanistan, local and international non-governmental organisations, civil society organisations and international partners to improve the status of women in Afghanistan, so that they can play a full role in a future, peaceful Afghan state.

Afghanistan: Females

Jo Swinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions he has had with the Government of Afghanistan on the involvement of women in the peace and reconciliation process in that country.

Alistair Burt: As the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Richmond (Yorks) (Mr Hague), told the House on 19 July 2011, Official Report, column 773:
	“Women have a very important role, in our view, in the future of Afghanistan”.
	In all our contact with the Government of Afghanistan, we continue to make clear that any political settlement should be inclusive and address the concerns of all Afghan citizens. We welcome the work of the Government of Afghanistan to take forward a political process of reconciliation and reintegration for Afghans who meet its end-state conditions of renouncing violence, breaking ties with al-Qaeda and abiding by the Afghan constitution, including its protection for all Afghan men and women.

British Indian Ocean Territory

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he has any plans to discuss with his (a) Mauritian and (b) US counterpart the British Indian Ocean Territory.

Henry Bellingham: The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Richmond (Yorks) (Mr Hague), has no current plans to speak with his Mauritian or American counterparts on the subject of the British Indian Ocean Territory.

British Indian Ocean Territory

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions officials in his Department have had with their (a) Mauritian and (b) US counterparts on the British Indian Ocean Territory.

Henry Bellingham: Officials and our high commissioner in Port Louis have regular discussions with their Mauritian counterparts.
	The annual UK-US political/military talks on the British Indian Ocean Territory were held at official level in Washington on 22-23 September.

Procurement

Gordon Henderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what estimate he has made of the cost of employing civil servants to undertake procurement for his Department in (a) 2008-09, (b) 2009-10 and (c) 2010-11; and what estimate he has made of the cost of (i) employing civil servants and (ii) engaging consultants to undertake procurement for his Department in 2011-12.

David Lidington: The costs to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office of employing civil servants to undertake procurement in the years 2008-09 and 2009-10 can be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
	In 2010-11 the cost of civil servants in a formal procurement role was £1.16 million. Our current estimate of the cost of full-time civil servants in the current financial year is £1.41 million. While this indicates an increase in costs, this is as a result of moving distributed procurement expertise from other parts of the business to provide a more centralised procurement department to improve efficiency.
	We estimate that the cost of consultancy services engaged on procurement in 2011-12 will be £90,000. This reflects a decrease in the use of procurement consultancy specialists who now have to be approved by the Efficiency and Reform Group (ERG) as part of the Government-wide consultancy approval process.

Procurement

Stewart Hosie: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what contracts of a monetary value of (a) between £100,000 and £500,000, (b) between £500,000 and £1 million, (c) between £1 million and £5 million, (d) between £5 million and £10 million, (e) between £10 million and £50 million, (f) between £50 million and £100 million, (g) between £100 million and £500 million, (h) between £500 million and £1 billion, (i) between £1 billion and £5 billion and (j) over £5 billion his Department has entered into with private suppliers in each year since 1990.

David Lidington: Procurement responsibilities and the awarding of contracts are devolved to directorates in London and posts overseas. The information could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Foreign Investment in the UK

Douglas Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent assessment he has made of the extent to which his Department focuses on promoting trade and inward investment.

Mark Prisk: I have been asked to reply.
	The Government have set out a very clear ambition for the UK's trade and investment agenda. Trade and inward investment was one of the themes in the first phase of the Growth Review.
	Working with the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO), UK Trade and Investment (UKTI) is the Government Department that helps UK based businesses succeed in the global economy and assists overseas companies to bring their high-quality investment to the UK. UKTI's strategy, ‘Britain Open for Business’, launched in May 2011, sets out plans to provide practical support to exporters and inward investors over the next five years. Its purpose is to help our economy grow by boosting exports and encouraging foreign companies to invest in the UK.
	At the same time, and complementary to UKTI's strategy, the FCO launched its Charter for Business. This sets out seven commitments that the FCO will make, as a part of its core activity, to support UK business overseas and to attract investors to the UK. Further details can be found at:
	www.fco.gov.uk
	UKTI uses its network of staff across the globe to showcase UK strengths in sectors where we have world-beating capability and this can pay big commercial dividends, particularly in the more challenging emerging markets.
	According to independent research, UK companies attributed £6 billion worth of additional profits directly to the assistance of UKTI during 2010-11. That is an additional £22 of profit for every £1 spent on export promotion. In addition, in 2010-11 UKTI assisted more foreign direct investment projects than ever before—849 of 1,434 projects entering the UK (59%).
	The UKTI website:
	www.ukti.gov.uk
	gives further information on UKTI services and its strategy.

Ghana: Deportation

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many Ghanaian nationals have been deported from the UK to Ghana in each of the last 10 years.

Damian Green: I have been asked to reply.
	The following table provides the available information on total number of Ghana nationals who were removed or departed voluntarily from the UK to Ghana by type in each year from 2004 to 2010. Data for earlier years are not available.
	
		
			 Removals and voluntary departures (1,2) , by type, nationals of Ghana to Ghana, January 2004 to December 2010 
			 Number of departures 
			  2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 (8) 
			 Removals and voluntary departures, nationals of Ghana to Ghana 1,170 1,187 858 868 1,050 862 845 
			 of which: enforced removals and notified voluntary departures(3,4) 840 873 497 544 604 520 440 
			 Assisted Voluntary Returns(5) 1 4 24 35 52 65 71 
			 Other voluntary departures(6) n/a 4 35 34 116 111 234 
			 Non-asylum cases refused entry at port and subsequently removed(7) 329 306 302 255 278 166 100 
			 n/a = not applicable (1) Removals and voluntary departures recorded on the system as at the dates on which the data extracts were taken. (2) Destination as recorded on source database. (3) Due to a reclassification of removal categories, figures include asylum removals which have been performed by Enforcement Officers using port powers of removal and a small number of cases dealt with at juxtaposed controls. (4) Since October 2006, figures include persons leaving under Facilitated Return Schemes. (5) Persons leaving under Assisted Voluntary Return Programmes run by Refugee Action from April 2011 (previously run by the International Organization for Migration) . May include some cases leaving under the Assisted Voluntary Return for Irregular Migrants Programme and some cases where enforcement action had been initiated. (6) Since January 2005, persons who it has been established left the UK without informing the immigration authorities. (7) Figures include persons departing voluntarily after enforcement action had been initiated against them, cases dealt with at juxtaposed controls, removals performed by Immigration Officers at ports using enforcement powers and since 2005 a small number of cases who it has been established left the UK without informing the immigration authorities. (8) Provisional. 
		
	
	The Home Office publishes quarterly and annual statistics on the number of persons removed or departed voluntarily from the UK within Immigration Statistics. The data on removals and voluntary departures are available in tables rv.01 to rv.08 from the Library of the House and from the Home Office Science, Research and Statistics web pages at:
	http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/science-research/research-statistics/migration/migration-statistics1/

International Trade

Douglas Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent assessment he has made of progress towards his Department's objective of (a) doubling trade with India, (b) increasing trade with China to 100 billion US dollars per annum, (c) increasing exports to China to 30 billion US dollars per annum, (d) doubling trade with Kuwait, (e) doubling trade with Qatar, (f) increasing trade with the United Arab Emirates to £12 billion per annum, (g) doubling trade with South Africa and (h) doubling trade with Turkey.

Mark Prisk: I have been asked to reply.
	Progress towards achieving these objectives is a long-term commitment for the Government.
	UK Trade and Investment and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, supported by a whole-of-government effort, lead on this work. The Government's aim is to use their networks of staff across the globe to showcase UK strengths in sectors where we have world-beating capability. This can pay big commercial dividends, particularly in the more challenging emerging markets.
	As trade statistics are a lagging indicator, they will be registered in subsequent exercises that feed into departmental and Government-level assessments.

Israel: Official Visits

Andrew Love: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what prior agreement was reached between the Government and the Government of Israel on special mission status for the visit to the UK of the Leader of the Opposition in Israel; what the terms of the agreement were; and on what date it was agreed.

Alistair Burt: There was no formal agreement with the Government of Israel on special mission status. In Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) practice, there are no prescribed formalities for consenting to a special mission, but such consent may be inferred from the circumstances of any given visit.
	In relation to the visit to the UK by the Leader of the Opposition of Israel, Mrs Livni, on 5-6 October, the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend, the Member for Richmond (Yorks) (Mr Hague), agreed on 27 September that she should visit the UK in order to discuss matters of mutual interest in relations between Israel and the UK. Detailed arrangements for the visit were then agreed between the FCO and the embassy of Israel.

Israel: Official Visits

Andrew Love: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs on what occasions special mission status has been granted to visiting politicians of opposition parties in Israel in the last 10 years; and if he will make a statement.

Alistair Burt: We do not have central records of opposition politicians who have visited the UK (Israeli politicians included) in the past 10 years, nor of the particular circumstances of each visit or whether they were designated as special missions.

Israel: Official Visits

Andrew Love: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions have been held with the Government of Israel on the granting of special mission status to Israeli opposition politicians visiting the UK; and if he will make a statement.

Alistair Burt: Subsequent to the visit by Leader of the Opposition of Israel, Mrs Livni, on 5-6 October, Foreign and Commonwealth Office officials have explained to the Israeli embassy how special mission status is considered and that each visit is treated on its own merits.

Official Visits

Andrew Love: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs on what occasions special mission status has been granted to visiting politicians of opposition parties in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement.

Alistair Burt: We do not have central records of opposition politicians who have visited the UK in the past five years, nor of the particular circumstances of each visit or whether they were designated as special missions.

Syria: Arms Control

Stephen Phillips: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps his Department is taking to prevent the export of arms to Syria.

Alistair Burt: The British Government led the way in introducing the EU arms embargo on Syria which came into force on 9 May 2011. We will continue to work with our international partners to push for strong international action to stop the transfer of arms to Syria.

ENVIRONMENT FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS

Coastal Access Pathway

David Hanson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will publish her timetable for development of the coastal access pathway in (a) the north-east and (b) England.

Richard Benyon: We announced our plans to introduce the new right of coastal access on a 30 km stretch of the English coast between Portland and Lulworth Cove in Dorset in time for the Olympic and Paralympic sailing events, which begin in July 2012. Natural England is also currently working on proposals to implement coastal access in a further five areas around the coast, including a stretch of the Hartlepool, Durham and Sunderland coast. Natural England has completed the initial stage of discussing the options for the coastal route with owners and land managers of land that may be affected in this area. I understand that Natural England is aiming to publish its draft report for public consultation by the end of January 2012.
	DEFRA officials are reviewing the costs and lessons learnt from the current implementation with Natural England so we can ensure that coastal access is delivered as cost-effectively as possible.

Coastal Access Pathway

Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether she plans to publish a timetable for the creation of the English coastal path; and if she will make a statement.

Richard Benyon: We announced our plans to introduce the new right of coastal access on a 30 km stretch of the English coast between Portland and Lulworth Cove in Dorset in time for the Olympic and Paralympic sailing events, which begin in July 2012. Natural England is also currently working on proposals to implement coastal access in a further five areas around the coast, as we announced in October 2010. When proposals for the coastal route have been prepared in each of the five areas Natural England will start a period of local consultation.
	DEFRA officials are reviewing the costs and lessons learnt from the current implementation with Natural England so we can ensure that coastal access is delivered as cost effectively as possible.

Biodiversity

Zac Goldsmith: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what timetable she has set for the development of the biodiversity offsetting pilots.

Richard Benyon: Biodiversity offsetting pilots will run for two years, starting in April 2012. There will be an independent evaluation of the pilots, supported by evidence from any complementary projects running in parallel.

Ministerial Meetings

Mary Creagh: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when she expects to publish on her Department's website details of ministerial meetings in 2011.

Richard Benyon: We have already published details of ministerial meetings for the January to March quarter of 2011 in line with the Cabinet Office guidelines at:
	http://www.defra.gov.uk/corporate/about/who/ministers/transparency/
	We will shortly publish details for the second quarter of 2011 along with other Government Departments.

Elephants: Conservation

Zac Goldsmith: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what agreements were reached on a decision-making mechanism for any future ivory sales at the CITES Standing Committee meeting on 15 to 19 August 2011.

Richard Benyon: The meeting confirmed the commissioning of an independent study on the development of a decision-making mechanism. The study will be co-ordinated by the convention on international trade in endangered species (CITES) secretariat in consultation with stakeholders, including African and Asian elephant range states, plus China, Japan, the USA and the UK. The resulting report will identify options for possible decision-making mechanisms for consideration at the next CITES Standing Committee in 2012 and eventual presentation to the next CITES Conference of the Parties in 2013.

Fly-tipping

Andrew Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the cost to the public purse of dealing with fly-tipping (a) nationally and (b) in Yorkshire was in each of the last three years.

Richard Benyon: The costs incurred by local authorities over the last three years for which published data are available for the clearing and disposal of fly-tipped waste in (a) England; and (b) Yorkshire and Humberside are provided in the following table:
	
		
			 Estimated costs of clearance and disposal of fly - tipped waste 
			 £ million 
			  Yorkshire and Humberside England 
			 2007-08 6.6 63.7 
			 2008-09 5.9 55.1 
			 2009-10 4.7 45.8 
		
	
	It should be noted that fly-tipping data are reported on a local authority and not a county basis. The authorities that fall under Yorkshire and Humberside produce these figures which have been taken from the Landfill Allowance Trading Scheme Government Office regional statistics.

Fly-tipping

Eric Ollerenshaw: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many incidents of fly-tipping were reported in each local authority area in the north-west in each of the last five years for which figures are available; and what the estimated cost of dealing with those incidents was.

Richard Benyon: A table summarising the data requested for the north-west region(1) as a whole is provided as follows. A table breaking down the data by local authority has been deposited in the House Library.
	
		
			 £ million 
			  Total number of fly-tipping incidents recorded by local authorities in north-west (1)  England Estimated costs to local authorities of clearance and disposal of fly-tipped waste 
			 2005-06 1,348,288 43.1 
			 2006-07 1,380,339 20.2 
		
	
	
		
			 2007-08 145,238 7.5 
			 2008-09 113,862 7.0 
			 2009-10 99,028 5.7 
			 (1) The authorities included within the north-west England heading have been taken from the Landfill Allowance Trading Scheme Government Office region. Source: Flycapture database, September 2011.

Litter

Mike Weatherley: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment her Department has made of the performance of Keep Britain Tidy in the last 10 years; and if she will make a statement.

Richard Benyon: A review of the grant-aided work of Keep Britain Tidy (then known as ENCAMS, an abbreviation of Environmental Campaigns) was conducted in 2007. It concluded that overall the organisation was efficient, well-run and delivering good work towards DEFRA's local environment quality aims.
	A copy of the review will be placed in the Libraries of the House.
	Keep Britain Tidy has long been a trusted adviser and partner for the Government on litter and other local environment quality issues. Its work has been central to the development of the Love Where You Live campaign, which uses funds from business to raise awareness of the litter problem and change attitudes and behaviour. The Government will continue to work with Keep Britain Tidy across the spending review period on these issues that matter greatly to everyone.

Litter

Mike Weatherley: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what information her Department holds on the level of litter in each year since 2001.

Richard Benyon: Each year since 2001, Keep Britain Tidy has carried out the Local Environment Quality Survey of England on the Government's behalf, which presents information about litter levels.
	Copies of the detailed reports are available on Keep Britain Tidy's website.
	The following table summarises the percentage of sites surveyed that were graded poor or unsatisfactory for litter levels.
	
		
			  Litter (percentage) 
			 2001-02 18 
			 2002-03 21 
			 2003-04 13 
			 2004-05 11 
			 2005-06 15 
			 2006-07 21 
			 2007-08 18 
			 2008-09 14 
			 2009-10 16

Litter

Mike Weatherley: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much funding her Department has given directly to (a) Keep Britain Tidy and (b) other anti-litter initiatives in each year since 2001.

Richard Benyon: The following table sets out the annual grant to Keep Britain Tidy since 2001.
	
		
			  Annual grant (£ million) 
			 2001-02 3.54 
			 2002-03 3.57 
			 2003-04 3.52 
			 2004-05 3.96 
			 2005-06 5.54 
			 2006-07 5.09 
			 2007-08 4.63 
			 2008-09 5.00 
			 2009-10 4.75 
			 2010-11 4.00 
		
	
	No funds have gone to other anti-litter initiatives.

Litter

Mike Weatherley: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will consider providing greater powers to local authorities to deal with people caught littering.

Richard Benyon: Local authority enforcement officers already have a range of powers to deal with litterers. Littering is a criminal offence under section 87 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990. Offenders can be prosecuted in a magistrates court, and on conviction may be fined up to £2,500 and receive a criminal record. As an alternative to prosecution local authority enforcement officers can issue a fixed penalty notice for a sum between £50 and £80 set locally.

Nature Conservation

Christopher Pincher: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what advice her Department has provided to the Environment Agency's National Permitting Centre on compliance with the requirements of the EU Habitats Directive in scrutiny of planned developments which may affect river Special Areas of Conservation (SACs) where such developments are a distance from the SAC.

Richard Benyon: Competent authorities such as the Environment Agency are required to ensure that development proposals (plans or projects) are scrutinised to identify any impacts on European protected sites such as SACs. Where the plan or project may have a significant effect on a site, either alone or in combination with other plans or projects, and is not directly connected with or necessary for the management of the site, an appropriate assessment must be made by the relevant competent authorities.
	Guidance on the assessment process is contained in DEFRA Circular 01/2005 and in documents issued by the European Commission. The competent authority is also required to consult the appropriate nature conservation body when carrying out an assessment and that body will provide advice in individual cases.

Recycling: Education

Thomas Docherty: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  how much her Department spends on educational projects directly associated with recycling;
	(2)  what funding her Department is providing to support education on recycling and the reduction of use of plastics in schools.

Richard Benyon: DEFRA does not provide direct financial support to any educational projects associated with recycling. However, DEFRA does provide funding to various organisations that have a role providing education and information relating to recycling and sustainable waste management, such as: local authorities, Keep Britain Tidy, Eco-Schools and the Waste and Resources Action Programme.

Seas and Oceans

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps she is taking to help increase levels of access to the coastline.

Richard Benyon: The Marine and Coastal Access Act 2009 provides for a new right of access for people to walk around the English coast, which will open up the English coastline for people to enjoy the natural environment and help support local economies by encouraging tourism.
	We have announced plans to introduce the new right of coastal access on a 30 km stretch of the English coast between Portland and Lulworth Cove in Dorset in time for the Olympic and Paralympic sailing events, which begin in July 2012. Natural England is also currently working on proposals to implement coastal access in a further five areas around the coast, as we announced in October 2010.

Sewage

Steve Brine: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when she plans to publish her Department's consultation on the registration of small domestic sewage discharges from septic tanks.

Richard Benyon: DEFRA and Environment Agency officials are currently undertaking a review regarding the requirement to register. The review includes engaging with key players such as the Country Land and Business Association, the National Farmers Union, and water companies etc, to develop proposals on an alternative approach. Once the review has been completed we will propose the way forward, probably around the turn of the year. In the meantime, the Environment Agency has suspended the registration system in England and there is no need for householders to register.

Wild Boar

William Bain: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what scientific advice her Department has received on the efficacy of a cull of wild boar on land managed by the Forestry Commission.

Richard Benyon: DEFRA has not received scientific advice on the efficacy of a cull of wild boar on land managed by the Forestry Commission.

COMMUNITIES AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT

Construction

Stephen Mosley: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what steps his Department is taking to deal with disreputable builders.

Andrew Stunell: The primary responsibility for policy on disreputable builders lies with the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills. This Department has authorised a number of building regulations competent person schemes whose registered members have been assessed as competent to carry out building work to the standards required in the building regulations and we encourage building owners to choose to employ such members. All such competent person schemes have procedures in place to deal with any problems with the work carried out.

Construction: Death

Stephen Mosley: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government 
	(1)  how many (a) deaths and (b) injuries have been caused by the failure of (i) freestanding and (ii) retaining walls in each of the past five years;
	(2)  whether he intends to bring freestanding and retaining walls within the scope of defined building works.

Andrew Stunell: The only information held centrally on numbers of deaths and injuries caused by the failure of freestanding or retaining walls is that held by the Health and Safety Executive arising from statutory duties to report certain work-related injuries under the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 1995. Information on the failure of these types of walls in other situations, such where a domestic owner occupier's wall collapses through neglect and injures a passer-by is not held centrally.
	However, my Department, under the last Administration, previously evaluated the potential of bringing freestanding and retaining boundary walls under building regulations control. This work identified that over a 10-year period between 1985 and 1995 that there were about 1,000 injuries per year sustained from the collapse or partial collapse of freestanding walls and on average less than one death per year. While we have not been able to establish a case for bringing such walls under the scope of building regulations, my Department has published guidance in a leaflet on wall design, construction and maintenance, “Your Garden Walls—Better to be Safe than Sorry”, which is available on the planning portal.
	We will shortly be launching a review on changes to the building regulations and we will use this consultation to explain the work that has been done to date on freestanding and retaining walls.

Counter-terrorism

Shabana Mahmood: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what transitional arrangements have been made with the Home Office for the transfer of responsibility for the Prevent strategy.

Andrew Stunell: The Prevent programme we inherited from the last Government was flawed. It confused the delivery of Government policy to promote integration with Government policy to prevent terrorism. The Secretary of State for the Home Department, my right hon. Friend the Member for Maidenhead (Mrs May), launched a new Prevent strategy in June, following the independent review overseen by Lord Carlile of Berriew. This new strategy defines far more strongly than before the proper scope of Prevent as an integral part of counter-terrorism strategy. There is now a clear separation between Prevent—led by the Home Office, and broader integration work—led by the Department for Communities and Local Government. Of course, we continue to work closely with Home Office colleagues particularly in the area of extremism and intolerance.

Departmental Correspondence

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether he has received representations concerning (a) the Big Society Bank, (b) the Work programme and (c) volunteering since June 2011; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Stunell: The Department receives many letters, and officials have many meetings with organisations, on the broad subject of the big society.
	These may cover issues regarding the Big Society Bank (now Big Society Capital), volunteering or the Work programme. These questions or issues are addressed according to the context in which they arise, with advice from other Government Departments as necessary.

Empty Properties: Redditch

Karen Lumley: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what plans his Department has to redevelop empty properties in Redditch and the west midlands.

Andrew Stunell: It is for the local authority to identify empty homes in their area and to work with landlords to bring them back into use.
	To support local authorities in tackling empty homes in England we have introduced a number of measures, to ensure that the right incentives and tools are in place to enable them to work with the owners of empty properties.
	We have included empty homes in the ‘New Homes Bonus’ to provide a strong financial incentive for local authorities to tackle empty homes in their area. The bonus means that the Government will match fund the council tax, using the national average in each band, on new homes and long-term empty properties (dwellings which are empty for six months or more) brought back into use, for six years, with an additional amount being provided for affordable homes.
	Redditch, for example, received £164,263 in year one of new homes bonus as a result of increasing their housing supply, including through bringing empty homes back into use, and will receive £985,578 over the next six years following year one delivery.
	We will also shortly be consulting on the concept of a council tax premium for empty homes.
	On 23 May we launched the ‘Geographical Information System (GIS) Empty Homes Mapping Toolkit’ and the ‘Empty Homes Knowledge Toolkit’. These will help local councils and communities better identify empty homes and as well as providing advice on how to bring them back into use.
	In addition, the Department has allocated £100 million through the ‘Affordable Homes Programme’ to help get empty homes back into productive use. We will shortly be launching the bidding guidance for this funding, which will be available to registered providers of social housing, including local authorities and community, voluntary and self-help groups across England.

Housing

Damian Hinds: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what assessment he has made of the effect of (a) increasing longevity, (b) net immigration, (c) average size of household and (d) other factors on demand for housing.

Andrew Stunell: The potential future demand for housing can be indicated by DCLG's household projections. The latest household projections were published on the DCLG website in November 2010 and can be found at:
	http://www.communities.gov.uk/publications/corporate/statistics/2033household1110
	They are based on the Office for National Statistics (ONS) 2008-based population projections. The number of households in England is projected to grow to 27.5 million in 2033, an increase of 5.8 million (27%) over 2008, or 232,000 households per annum.
	Population growth accounts for around 70% of household growth, with the other factors including age structure, marital status and the propensity to form households.
	Variant household projections using different assumptions such as ONS variant population projections can indicate the effect of various demographic factors. This is complicated as effects overlap, for example, increased longevity also contributes to smaller households.
	Comparison with the principal household projection of 232,000 per annum shows:
	(a) Longevity—average household growth of 170,000 per annum based on the ONS population projection assuming no improvement in life expectancy.
	(b) Net migration—average household growth of 149,000 per annum based on the ONS population projection assuming zero net migration.
	(c) Average household size—annual average household growth of 155,000 per annum if there were no decrease in average household size.

Housing: Finance

Andrew Bridgen: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether his Department is on schedule to release the next Housing Subsidy Determination on 11 November 2011; and on what date he plans to publish the final Housing Subsidy Determination.

Andrew Stunell: We are on track to issue the draft and final determinations to bring about the implementation of self-financing for council housing to the timetable we set out in our recent policy document entitled ‘Self-financing: Planning the transition'. The timing of the issuing of the final determination is, however, subject to achieving Royal Assent for the Localism Bill as this contains the powers under which the determinations are issued.
	We will not be publishing a Housing Subsidy Determination as we are ending the existing Housing Revenue Account subsidy system and replacing it with self-financing.

Inform: Finance

James Wharton: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much funding his Department has provided to Inform in each of the last five years.

Andrew Stunell: Inform, a centre for independent research on new religious movements, has received funding from my Department in each of the last five years as follows:
	
		
			  £ 
			 2007-08 100,000 
			 2008-09 140,000 
			 2009-10 145,375 
			 2010-11 140,000 
			 2011-12 45,000 
		
	
	We are considering whether further grant support is appropriate.

Planning Permission

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government 
	(1)  what definition he will use for the purposes of the National Planning Strategy for (a) countryside, (b) green area and (c) sustainable; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  if he will substitute the term appropriate development in place of the term sustainable development in his National Planning Strategy.

Greg Clark: We have undertaken a full 12-week consultation on the draft National Planning Policy Framework. We are now carefully considering all the responses received, and will take these into account in finalising the framework.

Private Rented Housing: Faulty Appliances

Alison Seabeck: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what discussions he has had with the Electrical Safety Council on (a) Part P of the Building Regulations and (b) fire risks of faulty appliances and installations in the private rented sector.

Andrew Stunell: The Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, the right hon. Member for Brentwood and Ongar (Mr Pickles), has had no discussions with the Electrical Safety Council, but I, as Under-Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government responsible for the building regulations, did have a meeting with them on 13 September to discuss the current review of part P of the building regulations.

Public Sector

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government 
	(1)  what steps he is taking to put in place a right to provide for public sector workers to take over the running of services; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what steps his Department has taken to encourage the development of public service mutuals in its area of responsibility; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Stunell: The Government have committed that every Department will put in place Rights to Provide for public sector workers to take over the running of services and DCLG is working towards this. In particular, the Community Right to Challenge in the Localism Bill will enable employees of a local authority to express an interest in taking over running the service they deliver as a mutual.
	The Department has also supported the concept of an employee-led bid for the audit work being tendered by the Audit Commission and has worked with the Commission to ensure a level playing field for all potential bidders.

Social Rented Housing: Environmental Health

Stephen McPartland: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if he will take steps to permit environmental health officers to provide abatement orders to social landlords.

Andrew Stunell: Section 80 of the Environmental Health Act 1990 prescribes circumstances in which local authorities shall serve abatement notices on private registered providers of social housing. I do not however consider that it would be practicable for a local authority to serve an abatement notice against itself in respect of its own housing stock.
	There are already appropriate statutory and regulatory mechanisms in place to ensure local authority landlords keep their stock in good condition and a clear route of redress for tenants who feel that their landlord is not fulfilling its responsibilities.

Social Rented Housing: Planning Permission

Jack Dromey: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether his Department has set a target for (a) the level of new build of and (b) the net increase in social housing.

Andrew Stunell: We are replacing the previous Government's top down targets with a range of reforms including fiscal incentives for local authorities which ensure they share in the benefits of growth.
	We have set no targets for the delivery of new build or the net increase in social housing. We are aiming to deliver up to 170,000 new affordable homes over the spending review period 2011-15.

Third Sector

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many letters he has received on funding for civil society organisations within his Department's area of responsibility in each month since 1 June 2010; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Stunell: This information is not available. All departmental correspondence is logged and dealt with through the departmental central system. However, the system is not sufficiently sophisticated to extract the data requested.

Third Sector

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much direct funding his Department provided to each civil society organisation it funded in (a) 2010-11, (b) 2011-12, (c) 2012-13, (d) 2013-14 and (e) 2014-15; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Stunell: The Department's records do not differentiate between payments made to civil society organisations and other voluntary and community sector organisations. A list of payments made under section 70 of the Charities Act 2006 to charities and voluntary groups is published in the Department's annual report and resource accounts on a yearly basis.
	This information will include payments made by the Department to civil societies for 2010-11. Information on the total payments made in 2011-12 has not yet been finalised and no direct funding has been finalised for future years.
	Annual reports and resources accounts for each year are published on the Department's website.
	Grant spending of individual amounts over £500 since 2008-09 is also published on the website as part of my Department's broader transparency agenda.

INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Adaptation Fund

Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development for what reasons his Department cannot accept public donations to the United Nations Adaptation Fund.

Stephen O'Brien: The Department for International Development does not have the legal authority to accept donations from the public.
	However, the Adaptation Fund has already accepted direct contributions from German school children and is exploring options for accepting small private donations through the organisation's website so that members of the public can easily support the fund.

Afghanistan: Reconstruction

Stephen Barclay: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development pursuant to the answer of 8 September 2011, Official Report, column 768W, on Afghanistan: reconstruction, what the breakdown of spending was for the £98 million of funding provided by his Department through the Afghanistan Reconstruction Trust Fund.

Stephen O'Brien: The following table provides a breakdown of the £98 million provided by the Department for International Development to the Afghanistan Reconstruction Trust Fund (ARTF), and estimated to have been spent on infrastructure:
	
		
			  £ million 
			 National Emergency Employment Programme (NEEP) 18 
			 National Rural Access Programme (NERAP) 18 
			 Assessed proportion of UK funds provided to the National Solidarity Programme, 25% of which was spent on ‘Transport’ 10 
			 Additional unearmarked funds provided to the ARTF, 15% of which are assessed as having been spent on infrastructure. 52 
			 Total 98

Departmental Billing

Mike Freer: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what the average cost to his Department was of processing the payment of an invoice in the latest period for which figures are available; and what proportion of invoices settled in that period his Department paid (a) electronically and (b) by cheque.

Stephen O'Brien: For the financial year 2010-11 the average cost to the Department for International Development (DFID) of processing an invoice in the UK is £7.70. We are unable to provide an average cost of processing an invoice across DFID, including our operations in developing countries, without incurring disproportionate costs. With regard all invoices processed across the Department within 2010-11 (a) 59% were paid electronically and (b) 30% were paid by cheque, with the balance being cash payments. All invoices settled in the UK were paid electronically.

Manpower

Stephen Barclay: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if he will publish an organogram showing the (a) number and (b) job titles of his Department's staff in Afghanistan (i) in each team and (ii) at each grade.

Stephen O'Brien: The Department for International Development does not publish the numbers of staff or job titles of staff in each country where we operate, as this may represent a security risk, especially to our staff serving in hostile environments or fragile states.

Manpower

Stephen Barclay: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if he will publish an organogram showing the (a) number and (b) job titles of his Department's staff in Pakistan (i) in each team and (ii) at each grade.

Stephen O'Brien: The Department for International Development does not publish the numbers of staff or job titles of staff in each country where we operate, as this may represent a security risk, especially to our staff serving in hostile environments or fragile states.

Manpower

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many officials in his Department are currently stationed in (a) British Overseas Territories and (b) the Turks and Caicos Islands.

Stephen O'Brien: The Department for International Development does not publish the numbers of staff in each country where we operate, as this may represent a security risk, especially to our staff serving in hostile environments or fragile states.

Manpower

Stephen Barclay: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many full-time equivalent officials in his Department were responsible for investigating fraud in each of the last three years; and what the locations were of those officials.

Stephen O'Brien: In 2009-10 and 2010-11, the Department for International Development (DFID) had 5.4 full-time equivalent (FTE) officials responsible for fraud investigations within the Counter Fraud Unit located in East Kilbride, Scotland, and a further 0.5 FTE located in London. These resources were supplemented by external investigators (in the UK or overseas) as required.
	For 2011-12, DFID is making greater and more targeted use of forensic accountants and external investigators to strengthen its ability to investigate allegations and help fraud-proof its programmes. There are now 3.5 FTE officials responsible for investigations located in East Kilbride and 1.5 FTE located in London, reinforced by a worldwide framework contract for external specialist investigators.

Developing Countries: Tax Evasion

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if he will bring forward proposals to reduce the dependency of developing countries on international aid; what recent assessment he has made of the effects on developing countries of (a) increasing provision of capacity building to strengthen tax systems and (b) reducing capital flight by ensuring that international (i) taxation and (ii) transparency rules protect developing countries from tax evasion; and if he will make a statement.

Stephen O'Brien: By promoting development, the UK's aid programme should over the long term help to reduce the dependency of developing countries on aid. Improving tax systems can be an important part of this. Effective tax systems are central to effective states and can help to reduce aid dependency.
	The UK provides capacity building to help strengthen tax systems in developing countries. As well as collecting revenue, good tax systems also encourage accountability and better governance. The Government have supported the creation of semi-independent revenue authorities in countries including Uganda, Mozambique and Rwanda, significantly improving revenue collection. In Burundi, the UK is helping to establish an independent revenue authority which is already expecting to raise £35 million more revenue this year than last year.
	The Government strongly support improvements in international tax information exchange to help all countries, including developing countries, tackle tax evasion and avoidance. The work of the Global Forum on Tax Transparency and Exchange of Information, which the UK fully supports and which developing countries are being encouraged to join, is particularly important in this respect. In addition, one of the Government's first acts on coming into office was to sign up to a new international protocol strengthening the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)/ Council of Europe Convention on Mutual Administrative Assistance in Tax Matters.
	The UK is also working bilaterally, through the OECD and through the OECD Tax and Development Task Force, to provide technical assistance for developing countries with transfer pricing, to enhance their ability to assess and collect the tax they are owed.
	The Government have made clear that we will press at the European Union (EU) for requirements to be placed on EU extractive industry companies to disclose the payments they make to Governments. Such disclosures will enable the citizens of resource rich countries to see what their Governments receive from the exploitation of natural resources and promote accountability in the use of these funds.

Developing Countries: Taxation

Jim McGovern: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps his Department is taking to assist developing countries to collect taxes they are owed by multi-national companies.

Stephen O'Brien: The Government are providing support to strengthen the tax systems of a number of developing countries including Tanzania, Pakistan and Afghanistan. In some cases, such as in Burundi and Mozambique, our support includes help in establishing or strengthening units to deal with large taxpayers, which include multi-national companies or local companies in which multi-nationals have shares.
	We also support global efforts to ensure that developing countries are able to participate in tax information exchange, to combat tax evasion and avoidance. One of this Government's first acts on coming to office was to support extending the Convention on Mutual Administrative Assistance in Tax Matters to developing countries.

E-mail

Jack Dromey: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development whether any (a) Ministers, (b) officials and (c) special advisers in his Department use private e-mail accounts for the conduct of Government business.

Stephen O'Brien: The Ministerial Code, the Code of Conduct for Special Advisers, and the Civil Service Code set out how Ministers, officials and special advisers should conduct Government business.

Ghana

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many officials of his Department are posted to Ghana.

Stephen O'Brien: The Department for International Development does not publish the numbers of staff in each country where we operate, as this may represent a security risk, especially to our staff serving in hostile environments or fragile states.

Oil

Bob Ainsworth: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what meetings (a) he and (b) Ministers in his Department have had with oil companies since January 2011; and if he will publish the minutes of such meetings.

Stephen O'Brien: Details of ministerial meetings are available on the website of the Department for International Development (DFID) at:
	http://www.dfid.gov.uk/About-us/Our-organisation/Ministers/
	and are published every quarter in the normal way.

Overseas Aid

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what consultation takes place with local communities in developing countries when implementing policies encouraged and funded by British overseas aid; and if he will make a statement.

Stephen O'Brien: The UK Government have made a commitment to
	“give people more power and control over how aid is spent”
	as part of the wider commitment to increase transparency and value for money.
	The Government support consultation with local communities before policies are implemented to make sure they are the right policies. It also supports feedback on their implementation to make sure results are being delivered on the ground. For example:
	The Government aim to ensure that people's priorities for poverty reduction inform our investments in health, education and other policies—e.g. through Participatory Poverty Assessments.
	Consulting directly with priority groups—for example, enabling girls themselves to carry out research in communities, focusing on what issues are important to girls and what are their ambitions.
	Exploring innovative ways to consult communities using new technologies. Through one pilot, local communities will be able to feed back information on how aid is used, using web platforms to plot stories and feedback on a live map.

Pakistan: Floods

Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment he has made of the extent of monsoon flooding in the Pakistani province of Sindh; and what assistance his Department is offering.

Stephen O'Brien: According to assessments made by the UN and the Government of Pakistan, the number of people affected by the 2011 monsoon in Sindh has reached at least 5.44 million. The UK continues to work with the UN and the Government of Pakistan to monitor the situation closely. The UN Rapid Response Plan will be revised in November to reflect revised relief and recovery needs.
	The UK anticipated possible further flooding in Pakistan this year and pre-positioned thousands of tents, blankets and hygiene kits through the International Federation of the Red Cross and Pakistan Red Crescent Society in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Punjab and Sindh. The UK also provided assistance to the International Organisation of Migration (IOM) to provide emergency shelter kits to over 37,000 people in Sindh. We are also supporting the World Health Organisation's Disease Early Warning System, which is helping to prevent outbreaks of major health epidemics in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Punjab and Sindh. In response to the initial UN Rapid Response Plan, the UK provided further support to IOM to deliver emergency shelter and flood resistant new homes to more than 255,000 affected people in Sindh.

Population: Sustainable Development

Zac Goldsmith: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what plans he has to tackle the negative effects of rapid population growth on sustainable development.

Stephen O'Brien: Rapid population growth will place a significant strain on the ability of Governments to deliver basic services such as health and education. Even with economic growth, the increase in global population is likely to build additional pressure on natural resources with some regions of the world experiencing increased water scarcity, food shortages and new challenges for sustainable energy supplies and land availability.
	The UK Government are working closely with others to advance a comprehensive understanding of the role of population dynamics (specifically the demographic dividend associated with declining fertility) in helping achieve increased economic productivity and rising per capita income in developing economies. The lack of choices for women and girls and their inability to be able to exercise control over their own fertility is a major cause of poverty and also contributes to population growth. Some 215 million women, desperately wanting to delay or avoid pregnancy, are not using an effective method of family planning.
	The UK's Framework for Results “Choices for women: Planned pregnancies, safe births and healthy newborns” sets out how the Government will double their efforts on women's and children's health. It commits us to enabling at least 10 million more women to use modern methods of family planning by 2015, contributing to a wider global goal of 100 million new users, and to preventing more than 5 million unintended pregnancies.

Sierra Leone

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development whether he plans to visit Sierra Leone.

Stephen O'Brien: I have no firm plans to visit Sierra Leone at present, having previously visited in both July 2010 and July 2011, but expect to do so before too long.

EDUCATION

Academies

Lisa Nandy: To ask the Secretary of State for Education 
	(1)  what estimate he has made of the average cost of converting a school to academy status in the latest period for which figures are available;
	(2)  how many applications from schools his Department has received to convert to academy status since May 2010;
	(3)  how many academy conversions he expects to complete by the end of 2011;
	(4)  which teams within his Department are responsible for supporting schools to convert to academy status;
	(5)  how many civil servants his Department employs for the purposes of dealing with the conversion of schools to academy status;
	(6)  what his Department's budget is to support the conversion of schools to academy status for 2011-12;
	(7)  what discussions he has had with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on extending the budget for school academy conversions;
	(8)  whether resources have been transferred from other areas of his Department's budget for the purposes of funding academy conversions;
	(9)  whether Mr Dominic Cummings was involved in discussions concerning his Department's budget following his appointment as special adviser.

Nick Gibb: The Academies Act 2010 financial impact assessment identified that conversion costs could be around £75,000-80,000, based on experience of the legal and associated costs of opening sponsored academies. Actual conversion costs fluctuate between schools depending on individual circumstances. Schools may apply to the Department to receive a one-off £25,000 conversion support grant to contribute towards these costs. Additional grants are also available for private finance initiative schools.
	From May 2010 until 1 October 2011, 1,526 applications were received from schools wishing to convert to academy status. A list of all applications received (the “Publication List”) is updated monthly and available on the Department for Education website at:
	http://www.education.gov.uk/schools/leadership/typesofschools/academies/a0069811/map-of-open-academies-and-schools-submitting-applications
	As at 1 October 2011, 1,031 Schools in England had converted to academy status. A further 495 schools had at this time applied to convert. It typically takes three to four months for a school to convert. As set out in the recent DFE consultation on the basis for the decision on the appropriate amount of academies funding transfer for 2011-12 and 2012-13, current estimates of the number of academy converters for the financial year 2011/12 are for between 1,550 and 2,113 schools to convert to become academies. It is important to point out that these are the best estimates which can be made at this time given the demand-led nature of the academies conversion programme. They should not therefore be regarded as a target but as the best assessment that can be made of how the expansion in the numbers of academies may develop.
	Project Leads in the Academy Converter Division (within the Infrastructure and Funding Directorate) liaise directly with schools to support them in their conversion to academy status. There are currently 98 full-time equivalent officials working exclusively in the Department's Academy Converter Division. Of these staff, the majority are Project Leads who work directly with schools that are seeking information about becoming an academy or which have applied to convert. There are other staff in the Department who make a contribution to policy development and programme delivery related to schools converting to academy status as part of their wider role. Current staff numbers cost £2,443,000, The converter grant paid so far is £18,642,779, although this is expected to increase as more converting schools are given grants to convert.
	The Chancellor of the Exchequer, my right hon. Friend the Member for Tatton (Mr Osborne) and the Secretary of State for Education, my right hon. Friend the Member for Surrey Heath (Michael Gove), have regular discussions on a range of education issues. These meetings have included discussions about different scenarios in relation to the number of schools wishing to convert to academy status. Like all organisations the Department regularly reviews its budgetary position to ensure that it has sufficient contingency to cover all potential commitments.
	Special advisers discuss all areas of the Department's business with the Secretary of State for Education including the Department's budget.

Academies: Hertfordshire

Stephen McPartland: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many primary schools have converted to academy status in (a) Hertfordshire and (b) England since May 2010; and if he will make a statement.

Nick Gibb: As at 1 September there were three primary schools in Hertfordshire and 271 primary schools in England that had converted to academy status.
	A full list of these schools is available on the Department for Education website:
	http://www.education.gov.uk/schools/leadership/typesofschools/academies/b0069811/open-academies-and-academy-projects-in-development

Apprentices

Gordon Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many businesses in the (a) public and (b) private sector are offering apprenticeships to (i) 16 to 18 year olds and (ii) 19 to 24 year olds in 2011-12; how many such businesses there were in each category in each of the last five years; and how many such businesses in each such year had (A) between 0 and 9 employees, (B) 0 and 49 employees, (C) 0 and 249 employees and (D) 250 or more employees.

John Hayes: holding answer 10 October  2011 
	The National Employers Skills survey (NESS) shows a national estimate of the proportion of apprentices employed by employer size. These data are based on repeated surveys of up to 79,000 employers across all business sectors in England. Table 1 shows the latest information from the published 2009 National Employer Skills survey (NESS 2011 is expected to be published in 2012) on the proportion of apprentices employed by the size of establishment, expressed as a percentage of all apprenticeships.
	
		
			 Table 1: Percentage of apprentices employed by establishment size (NESS 2009) 
			  Number of employees in establishment 
			  2-4 5-24 25-99 100-199 200-499 500+ Total 
			 Percentage apprentices employed 13 34 23 8 11 10 100 
			 Note: Figure 8.4, p. 208 in http://www.ukces.org.uk/assets/bispartners/ukces/docs/publications/evidence-report-23-ness-main-report-2009.pdf accessed on 27 September 2011. 
		
	
	The percentage of apprentices employed by establishment size data (NESS 2009) is not available by age or by further breakdown of the number of employee bands. We do not directly measure the number of apprenticeship starts in the public and private sector but table 1 shows the number of apprenticeship starts in the ‘Health, Public Services and Care' Sector Subject Area for 2009/10, the latest year for which final data are available. This may include some private sector health and care businesses and exclude some public sector apprenticeships covered in other sector subject areas but it is the most readily available information.
	
		
			 Table 1: Apprenticeship programme starts by sector subject area in England, 2005/06 to 2009/10 
			 Sector subject area 2005/06 2006/07 2007/08 2008/09 2009/10 
			 Agriculture, horticulture and animal care 4,050 3,930 4,500 5,210 5,690 
			 Arts, media and publishing 320 230 110 230 440 
			 Business, administration and law 37,160 36,430 50,740 64,060 76,590 
			 Construction, planning and the built Environment 21,670 27,520 27,830 29,220 25,210 
			 Education and training 110 90 330 1,160 860 
			 Engineering and manufacturing      
			 Technologies 30,870 34,660 43,100 36,990 37,860 
			 Health, public services and care 22,480 23,590 31,070 34,890 44,150 
			 Information and communication technology 7,500 6,430 8,010 8,820 12,570 
			 Languages, literature and culture (1)— (1)— (1)— (1)— (1)— 
			 Leisure, travel and tourism 5,860 5,590 6,270 11,330 14,690 
			 Preparation for life and work 10 (1)— (1)— (1)— (1)— 
			 Retail and commercial enterprise 39,990 43,020 49,290 48,030 61,620 
			 Science and mathematics (1)— (1)— (1)— (1)— (1)— 
			 Unknown 4,980 2,940 3,510 (1)— (1)— 
			 Total 175,000 184,400 224,800 239,900 279,700 
			 (1) Indicates a base value of less than five. Note: 1. Figures are rounded to the nearest ten except for the total which is rounded to the nearest hundred. Source: Individualised Learner Record 
		
	
	Information on the number of apprenticeship starts is published in a quarterly statistical first release (SFR). The latest SFR was published on 23 June 2011:
	http://www.thedataservice.org.uk/statistics/statisticalfirstrelease/sfr_current

Crimes of Violence: Children

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education if he will respond to the UN Global Survey on Violence against Children; and if he will place in the Library a copy of his response.

Tim Loughton: I refer the hon. Member to the reply given on 10 October 2011, Official Report, column 190W, to the hon. Member for Chesterfield (Toby Perkins).

Curriculum

Helen Grant: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what consideration he gave to the gender balance of his Department's National Curriculum review panel.

Nick Gibb: The review of the National Curriculum in England is being advised by an Expert Panel made up of respected academics, as well as an Advisory Committee consisting mainly of successful head teachers and also including representation from higher education and employers. The terms of reference for the Expert Panel and Advisory Committee and pen pictures of their members can be found at:
	www.education.gov.uk/nationalcurriculum
	The Expert Panel and Advisory Committee were selected on the basis of their expertise and experience. Both groups include both men and women.

Curriculum: Females

Helen Grant: To ask the Secretary of State for Education whether his Department has given consideration to adding texts to the National Curriculum in order to enhance the teaching of history relating to women.

Nick Gibb: One of the requirements of the current history curriculum is to develop in pupils an understanding of the diverse experiences and ideas, beliefs and attitudes of men, women and children in past societies and how these have shaped the world. The current programmes for history are a broad framework, so although there are no specific references to history relating to women in the range and content, they provide ample opportunities for schools to cover this topic.
	We are currently undertaking a review of the National Curriculum. The review is considering which subjects beyond English, maths, science and physical education should in future be compulsory subjects within the National Curriculum, and at which key stages. We expect to announce our proposals early next year. For those subjects which we propose should remain part of the National Curriculum, we will work with subject experts and other interested parties during the course of next year to develop new Programmes Of Study for those subjects. There will be a full public consultation before final decisions are made.

Curriculum: Females

Helen Grant: To ask the Secretary of State for Education (a) to what extent and (b) in what way his Department's review of the National Curriculum will consider the inclusion of literary, mathematical or scientific works by women.

Nick Gibb: The Department's review of the National Curriculum will consider the inclusion of literary, mathematical or scientific works, whether written by women or men, in statutory Programmes of Study where these cover the essential knowledge that all children should acquire. These decisions will be based on consideration of advice received from subject experts, our analysis of international evidence and the responses to the Call for Evidence conducted earlier this year. There will be a full public consultation on our proposals before final decisions are taken.

Consultants

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what procedures his Department uses when engaging external consultants.

Tim Loughton: The Department has introduced internal procedures to review all proposals to engage consultants. These procedures now incorporate the cross-Government consultancy review arrangements established by the Efficiency and Reform Group (ERG) in Cabinet Office for high-value cases.
	Consultancy engagements have to meet criteria before approval is granted:
	The requirement is of genuine operational necessity;
	The work cannot be undertaken by existing in-house resources;
	The commercial proposals represent real value for money.
	Within the Department all consultancy proposals require at least a business case signed off at director level. For engagements in our arm’s length bodies, sign-off is at chief executive level. Separate approval processes are then required depending on the value and requirement of the engagement. All cases are reviewed within Finance and Commercial Group at deputy director and director levels. Engagements that are intended to last for over nine months require clearance from the Minister with responsibility for efficiency and value for money, my noble Friend, Lord Hill of Oareford, and the Cabinet Office. Consultancy contracts of over £20,000 also require approval by Lord Hill and if they involve procurement- related consultancy, they also require Cabinet Office approval.
	Existing consultancy contracts of £20,000 and above are reviewed every three months from the date of contract commencement to ensure they still meet the criteria. Contracts are reviewed at three and six months within the Department, and at nine months they are referred to Cabinet Office for approval to continue.
	The Department is subject to EU and UK Procurement regulations and the strategy of centralising procurement of common goods and services for central Government Departments. As such the Department encourages use of existing framework agreements wherever possible, including those established by the Government Procurement Service. Where requirements are not met by an existing framework, business units are advised that, following the fundamental principles of EU legislation, and Government purchasing policy, contracts should be awarded following competitive tendering.
	Up to February 2011, Departments had saved £350 million on consultancy engagements—a reduction of 55%.

Free Schools

Lisa Nandy: To ask the Secretary of State for Education 
	(1)  whether his Department conducted a public procurement process for the provision of services to free schools from July 2011;
	(2)  when his Department made its first payment to the New Schools Network;
	(3)  whether the New Schools Network has been promoted at any events funded by his Department.

Nick Gibb: The first payment to the New Schools Network (NSN) was made in December 2010 and the grant funding arrangement lasted until 31 July 2011. The agreement with NSN was extended without additional funding by two months to 30 September 2010 after NSN offered to work for free. On 5 September the Department launched an open competitive process for an organisation to provide future support to groups interested in submitting an application to open a free school.
	The Department does not hold records centrally about the promotion of NSN at DFE-funded events although the Department does advise potential applicants of the support that NSN can provide.

Free Schools

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Education on what date he plans to publish his decision on applications for free schools wishing to open in 2012.

Nick Gibb: holding answer 10 October 2011
	The Department has now completed the process of assessing the applications it has received to establish free schools in 2012. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Education made an oral statement to the House on 10 October 2011, Official Report, columns 62-64, about those that are approved to move to the next stage of development.

Free Schools

Ian Mearns: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what proportion of applications to set up a free school have been rejected; and for what reasons in each case.

Nick Gibb: During the application round for Free Schools opening in 2011 approximately 90% of the 323 applications were rejected. In the application round for free schools opening in 2012, the outcome of which was announced on 10 October 2011, Official Report, columns 62-64, by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Education, approximately 75% of the 281 applications are not being taken forward. The Department does not publish details of unsuccessful applications.

Free Schools

Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Education 
	(1)  how many meetings on free schools (a) Ministers, (b) special advisers and (c) civil servants in his Department have had with (i) the New Schools Network and (ii) other organisations;
	(2)  how many organisations have received funding from his Department to provide advice on the establishment of free schools; and what the monetary value is of each such contract.

Nick Gibb: Ministers and special advisers have met NSN to discuss free schools on several occasions since May 2010; officials have had frequent meetings. Providing information on the exact number, and numbers of meetings about free schools with other organisations, could be done only at disproportionate cost.
	On 18 June 2010 the Department agreed to enter into a £500,000 grant agreement with the New Schools Network to provide pre-application advice and support to groups and individuals interested in opening a free school. No other organisations have received funding from the Department to provide similar support.

Further Education: Finance

Ben Wallace: To ask the Secretary of State for Education when he plans to commence a new round of funding for further education college capital projects.

John Hayes: I announced a new two year Further Education Capital Investment Programme in the consultation document entitled ‘New Challenges, New Chances: Next Steps in Implementing the Further Education Reform Programme’, which was published in August 2011. This programme was launched in September 2011 and details of the programme are available on the Skills Funding Agency's website.
	All further education colleges are eligible to apply for a £100,000 Renewal Grant subject to them making an additional contribution of twice the allocated amount to an appropriate project. In addition, all eligible colleges have the opportunity to bid through a challenge process for further ‘Enhanced Renewal Grant’ funding which could provide up to £2,000,000 for an individual project subject to the usual 2:1 funding criteria.

Offences Against Children

Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Education if he will introduce measures to improve the operation of local safeguarding children boards to take account of the conclusions of the ‘Out of Mind, Out of Sight’ report from the Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre.

Tim Loughton: Local Safeguarding Children Boards (LSCBs) have a key role in tackling child sexual exploitation. We know that there are examples of good practice in identifying this abuse and responding to it; but not enough LSCBs are tackling the problem proactively. The action plan which the Government are committed to publishing in the autumn will set out a range of actions for tackling child sexual exploitation, including ones to help LSCBs improve their performance. The action plan will take account of the conclusions of the ‘Out of Mind, Out of Sight’ report and of other related reports and research findings.

Schools: Bullying

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what steps he is taking to reduce bullying in schools.

Nick Gibb: The Government made a clear commitment to tackle bullying—particularly prejudice-based bullying—in the Schools White Paper, ‘The Importance of Teaching’. We are supporting school staff to proactively identify the motivation of poor behaviour and bullying that are particular to their school, and to ensure that they have clear strategies in place to tackle them. We have published clearer anti-bullying advice to help schools to develop an effective approach. We have updated statutory guidance to school governors, clarifying their legal powers to tackle bullying both in and outside school; and legislation currently before the House will strengthen the authority of teachers to enforce discipline and promote good behaviour. The new Ofsted inspections framework, which comes into force in January next year, will place a sharper focus on behaviour and bullying, increasing schools' accountability in this area.

Schools: Finance

Stephen McPartland: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what progress his Department has made on identifying annual expenditure on insurance across the school estate; and if he will make a statement.

Tim Loughton: The Department gathers spend information from schools on an annual basis in the form of consistent financial reporting (CFR).
	CFR standardises, simplifies and streamlines the reporting of school finances in all local authority (LA) maintained schools in England.
	Schools insurance is reported under three CRF codes: Supply Teacher insurance; Staff related insurance and Other insurance premiums.
	For the reporting period 2009/10, which is the latest period that the figures are available for, the following annual values were reported:
	Supply Teacher insurance—£151,485,424.20
	Includes
	Premiums paid to insurers for supply teacher cover
	Excludes
	Premiums paid to insurers for cover other than for teacher absence
	Vehicle insurance
	Accident and public liability insurance for persons not employed directly by the school
	School trip insurance
	Premises related insurance
	Staff related insurance—£47,212,124.85
	Includes
	Cover for non-teaching staff absence.
	Employee related insurance for accident and liability, assault, fidelity guarantee, libel and slander
	Excludes
	Insurance premiums paid to cover teaching absence for staff directly employed by the school
	Premises related insurance
	Vehicle insurance
	Accident and Public liability insurance for persons not employed directly by the school
	School trip insurance
	Other insurance premiums—£159,613,986 . 78
	Includes
	Premises related insurance
	Vehicle insurance
	Accident and public liability insurance for persons not employed directly by the school
	School trip insurance
	Excludes
	Insurance for supply teacher cover
	Staff insurance cover

Science: GCSE

Mark Lancaster: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what estimate he has made of the number of pupils who achieved grades A to C in (a) biology, (b) physics and (c) chemistry at GCSE in 2011 who are planning to study the subjects at AS Level.

Nick Gibb: Learner level information on attainment in 2011 is not yet available. However, we can estimate, using historical data for the cohort who completed Key Stage 4 in 2007/08, the proportion who went on to enter AS or A-levels in 2008/09 or 2009/10(1). These figures are shown in the following tables.
	
		
			 Biology 
			 Progression to AS/A-level—cumulative 
			 Attainment at Key Stage 4 Number at KS4 AS/A-level by year 12 (percentage) AS/A-level by year 13 (percentage) 
			 Biology A*-C 68,600 25 39 
			 Additional Science A*-C 240,400 13 17 
			 Core Science A*-C 67,100 1 2 
		
	
	
		
			 Physics 
			 Progression to AS/A-level—cumulative 
			 Attainment at Key Stage 4 Number at KS4 AS/A-level by year 12 (percentage) AS/A-level by year 13 (percentage) 
			 Physics A*-C 64,000 19 28 
			 Additional Science A*-C 240,500 6 8 
			 Core Science A*-C 67,300 0 1 
		
	
	
		
			 Chemistry 
			 Progression to AS/A-level—cumulative 
			 Attainment at Key Stage 4 Number at KS4 AS/A-level by year 12 (percentage) AS/A-level by year 13 (percentage) 
			 Chemistry A*-C 65,100 25 37 
			 Additional Science A*-C 240,500 9 11 
			 Core Science A*-C 67,300 0 1 
		
	
	(1) Two years data on AS-level and A-level entries have been used to estimate continuation to AS-level, because in many cases AS-levels are entered in year 12, but only “cashed in”, ie the award made by the awarding body, in year 13.

Teachers: Ex-servicemen

Michael Fallon: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many former service personnel have (a) applied for and (b) been enrolled in the Troops to Teachers programme.

Nick Gibb: We are developing a Troops to Teachers programme, which will provide a number of routes for service leavers who want to use their skills in schools, either through teaching, school leadership or providing specialist support to groups of pupils. We will announce further details of the Troops to Teachers programme later this year.
	The Troops to Teachers programme will encompass the Military to Mentors programme, which was launched last year. The Military to Mentors programme employs ex-services personnel to work with some of our most vulnerable young people, in schools. There are 10 participants on the current programme, 20 more confirmed to start the next programme and a further 20 at the application stage.

Teachers: Nottinghamshire

Gloria De Piero: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many teaching staff there are per child in (a) Ashfield constituency, (b) Nottinghamshire and (c) England.

Nick Gibb: The following table shows the ratio of pupils to teachers in local authority maintained/nursery, primary and secondary schools combined in November 2010.
	
		
			 Overall pupil:teacher ratios in local authority maintained nursery, primary and secondary schools, year: November 2010 (1) , coverage: Ashfield parliamentary constituency, Nottinghamshire local authority and England 
			  Ashfield (2) Nottinghamshire (3) England (3) 
			 PTR(2) 17.9 17.6 17.3 
			 (1) November 2010 figures are calculated using the most current figures e.g. January 2011 pupil numbers and November 2010 teacher numbers. (2) This figure excludes any teachers directly employed by the local authority who mainly work in schools within the constituency and is therefore not truly comparable with the LA and England figures. (3) The overall PTRs are based on the total FTE number of sole and dual-registered pupils on roll in local authority maintained nursery, primary and secondary schools and the FTE of all teachers in these schools (including: centrally-employed; occasional teachers; those on employment-based routes to QTS, others without QTS, those on paid absence and any replacements). Source: School Workforce Census and School Census.

Teachers: Pensions

Andrew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what assessment he has made of the effect of changes to teachers' pension arrangements on the ability of teachers to move between the state and independent sectors.

Nick Gibb: The Government have agreed that the recommendations from the Independent Public Service Pensions Commission (IPSPC), chaired by Lord Hutton of Furness, will form the basis for consultation on public sector pension reforms. Proposals are under discussion and the question of mobility between the state and independent sectors will be considered as a key element in concluding how the recommendations will be implemented.

Video Games: Industry

Mike Weatherley: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what discussions his Department has had with the Department for Culture, Media and Sport on the Livingstone Hope Skills review.

Nick Gibb: The report of the Livingstone Hope Skills review on the skills shortage faced by the video games and visual industries was launched in February 2011. Officials from the Department for Education and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport discussed the recommendations emerging from the review before the launch of the report, and have since met to discuss the Government's response.

WORK AND PENSIONS

Access to Work Programme: Barking

Margaret Hodge: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  in what (a) industries and (b) occupations people have been placed on the Work programme in Barking constituency to date;
	(2)  how many people on the Work programme in Barking constituency were placed in employment in (a) June, (b) July and (c) August 2011;
	(3)  how many people in Barking constituency have been referred to A4e to participate in the Work programme;
	(4)  how many people in Barking constituency have been referred to CDG to participate in the Work programme;
	(5)  how many people in Barking constituency have been referred to SEETEC to participate in the Work programme.

Chris Grayling: The Work programme was launched in June 2011, to deliver sustained employment that can change people's lives; providers have longer than ever before to make a difference.
	The Department is working to guidelines set by the UK Statistics Authority to ensure we are able to publish statistics that meet high quality standards at the earliest opportunity and we are aiming to publish referrals and attachments from spring 2012 and job outcomes from autumn 2012.
	The Department's publication strategy for Work programme statistics was placed in the House of Commons Library and is also available at:
	http://research.dwp.gov.uk/asd/index.php?page=wp

Atos Healthcare

Chris Williamson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what recent representations he has received on the way that Atos Healthcare carry out their assessments on behalf of his Department; and what plans he has for improvements in the way that Atos Healthcare undertake such assessments.

Chris Grayling: It is important the work capability assessment (WCA) is subject to an ongoing process of review, evaluation and refinement. This includes continuing to listen to the concerns of both representative groups and individuals and we welcome the recent Work and Pensions Select Committee Report which acknowledged improvements to the WCA resulting from the review process.
	As part of this continuous improvement Professor Harrington published his first Independent Review of the WCA in November 2010. He concluded that the principles of the assessment are right, but that the system contains some flaws that risk undermining its effectiveness. We fully endorse his review and have sought to implement all of its recommendations.
	Improvements include the introduction of mental, cognitive and intellectual ‘champions’ into assessment centres to improve the assessment of these functions. Atos has additionally published a customer charter which is available in their medical assessment centres, ensuring that individuals understand the level of service they may reasonably expect from the organisation.
	We will continue to review and refine the WCA to ensure that it is effective; fair for all claimants and as a result fair for the taxpayer. I am delighted therefore that Professor Harrington has agreed to take on the second Independent Review of the WCA. We look forward to receiving his further recommendations by the end of the year.

Atos Healthcare

Ian Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions when his Department's contract with Atos to carry out assessments for employment and support allowance will expire.

Chris Grayling: The Department's contract with Atos to carry out assessments for employment and support allowance will expire on 31 August 2015.

Carbon Monoxide: Poisoning

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what steps he is taking to provide information to the public on the (a) risk and (b) prevention of carbon monoxide poisoning.

Chris Grayling: The Government takes awareness of carbon monoxide issues very seriously, and provides information for the public on websites and in publications. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) advice to consumers is to always use a Gas Safe registered engineer for all gas work in their home, and to ensure that any gas appliances are regularly serviced and maintained. Although not a substitute for the correct installation or maintenance of an appliance, HSE also strongly recommends the use of audible carbon monoxide alarms. Additionally, HSE provides a free gas safety advice line, which gas consumers, tenants and landlords can contact for advice and information.
	The Gas Safe Register, the statutory registration scheme for gas engineers, was launched in April 2009. The Register has undertaken significant campaigns, including national TV advertising, coverage on a wide variety of consumer programmes and national and regional press and radio, along with regional and community events to raise public awareness of gas safety risks. Recent research by the Gas Safe Register has shown that 81% of consumers are aware of gas safety risks and the Gas Safe Register.
	HSE and Gas Safe Register continues to work to raise awareness of the risks of carbon monoxide poisoning, particularly with vulnerable groups such as the elderly and students. Gas Safe Register ran its first Gas Safety Week in September 2011 and reached millions of consumers with key gas safety messages.

Child Support Agency

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many times the Child Support Agency has not provided information within the timescale requested to the (a) Independent Case Examiner and (b) Parliamentary Ombudsman in each of the last three years.

Maria Miller: The Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission is responsible for the child maintenance system. I have asked the Child Maintenance Commissioner to write to the hon. Member with the information requested and I have seen the response.
	Letter from Noel Shanahan
	In reply to your recent Parliamentary Question about the Child Support Agency, the Secretary of State promised a substantive reply from the Child Maintenance Commissioner as the Child Support Agency is now the responsibility of the Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission.
	You asked the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many times the Child Support Agency has not provided information within the timescale requested to the (a) Independent Case Examiner and (b) Parliamentary Ombudsman in each of the last three years.
	The Commission has a service level agreement with the Independent Case Examiner (ICE) with agreed timescales for provision of information to ICE. The tables below set out performance against these service level agreements for the previous three years.
	
		
			 CSA service level agreement activity, 1 April 2010 to 31 March 2011 
			  Agreed timescale (days) Number provided to ICE Number provided later than SLA Percentage provided later than SLA (%) 
			 Resolution plans 10 550 53 10 
			 Record of evidence 40 575 106 18 
			 Draft reports 10 411 88 21 
		
	
	
		
			 CSA service level agreement activity, 1 April 2009 to 31 March 2010 
			  Agreed timescale (days) Number provided to ICE Number provided later than SLA Percentage provided later than SLA (%) 
			 Resolution plans 10 674 240 36 
			 Record of evidence 28 609 371 61 
			 Draft reports 10 341 117 34 
		
	
	
		
			 CSA service level agreement activity, 1 April 2008 to 31 March 2009 
			  Agreed timescale (days) Number provided to ICE Number provided later than SLA Percentage provided later than SLA (%) 
			 Resolution plans 10 728 225 31 
			 Record of evidence 28 386 288 75 
			 Draft reports 10 239 68 28 
		
	
	The Commission does not have a formal Service Level Agreement with the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman. The vast majority of requests for information from her office have individual timescales attached so the requested information would only be available at disproportionate cost.
	Whilst we have no formal agreement with the Ombudsman, the Commission has procedures in place to ensure requests for information are responded to in a timely manner.
	I hope you find this answer helpful.

Construction: Safety

Steve Rotheram: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether his Department has made an assessment of levels of awareness and understanding of the Health and Safety Executive's construction, design and management guidance amongst public sector bodies that procure construction projects.

Chris Grayling: In 2009 the Health and Safety Executive carried out a study examining health and safety issues in public sector construction procurement. The study was published in May 2011 in a research report “Health and safety in public sector construction procurement” and this is available on their website at:
	http://www.hse.gov.uk/research/rrhtm/rr848.htm

Construction: Safety

Steve Rotheram: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether he plans to implement the recommendation of his Department's report, entitled “One Death is too Many: inquiry into the Underlying Causes of Construction Fatal Accidents”, to apply Office of Government Commerce Common Minimum Standards throughout publicly funded construction projects, including local authorities.

Chris Grayling: The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has published research into the health and safety considerations in procurement of construction work by public sector clients. This research has been shared with the Cabinet Office who are currently updating the Common Minimum Standards for the Built Environment as set out in the Cabinet Office document “Government Construction Strategy” published in May 2011.

Departmental Billing

Eilidh Whiteford: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what proportion of invoices from suppliers his Department paid within 10 days of receipt in July and August 2010.

Chris Grayling: The Department for Work and Pensions became a signatory to the Prompt Payment Code in March 2009 and set a target to pay 90% of correct invoices within 10 days of receipt. This target applies to all invoices paid by the Department and its agencies which are covered by a single finance system. The target has been met consistently since the signing of the Code.
	The proportion of all supplier payments made within 10 days of receipt of an invoice for the months requested are:
	July
	Invoices received—70,248
	Invoices paid within 10 Days—68,335
	Percentage paid within 10 Days—97%
	August
	Invoices received—59,052
	Invoices paid within 10 Days—57,503
	Percentage paid within 10 Days—97%

Official Hospitality

Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much his Department spent on hospitality for events hosted by each Minister in his Department in each of the last 12 months.

Chris Grayling: There was no DWP expenditure on hospitality for events hosted by each Minister in his Department in each of the last 12 months.

Procurement

Gordon Henderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of the cost of employing civil servants to undertake procurement for his Department in (a) 2008-09, (b) 2009-10 and (c) 2010-11; and what estimate he has made of the cost of (i) employing civil servants and (ii) engaging consultants to undertake procurement for his Department in 2011-12.

Chris Grayling: Procurement activity in the Department for Work and Pensions is covered by a corporate commercial strategy under which costs are monitored each financial year. The cost of employing civil servants to undertake procurement for the Department and its agencies and non-departmental public bodies in 2008-09, 2009-10 and 2010-11 were:
	
		
			 Financial year Costs (£ million) 
			 2011-12 (1)44 
			 2010-11 49.12 
			 2009-10 49.65 
			 2008-09 51.63 
			 (1) Estimate 
		
	
	The Department is committed to delivering corporate efficiencies in order to deliver value for money for the taxpayer and will continue to review progress in achieving this.
	The Department has not engaged, and does not plan to engage, any consultants to undertake procurements on its behalf in 2011-12.

Procurement

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much his Department has budgeted for penalties for the early termination of contracts under (a) the flexible new deal and (b) pathways to work.

Chris Grayling: The information is as follows:
	(a) Negotiations to agree settlements in closing flexible new deal phase 1 contracts are currently in train and are commercial in confidence. It would therefore be prejudicial to DWP's remaining active negotiations to release this information at this time
	(b) Pathways to work contracts ended on 31 March 2010, therefore, no penalty costs for early termination were budgeted for or incurred.

Universal Credit

Alison Seabeck: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of the likely level of redundancies in the Housing Benefit Service after the universal credit becomes fully operational.

Steve Webb: Universal credit is a national benefit. It will be delivered largely through an online service, with its core administration most efficiently run by a centralised system. As DWP start to build the organisation to deliver universal credit, and we have yet to settle on the precise detail, and select the right people with the right capability it is likely some of those skills will exist within local authorities. We will therefore always look to include local authority staff in our thinking.
	In relation to the longer term delivery of universal credit, we will continue to work with colleagues in HM Revenue and Customs and local authorities to test new ways of working and impact ongoing Delivery Model design at both a national and local level. Our aim is to work collaboratively to enable the decision making process and deliver optimal value. This includes the decision making around any redundancies, for which we have a small amount in our business case (whether they are in DWP, HMRC or local authorities). However, we do not expect there to be significant numbers of redundancies, if any at all, given the time available to us to plan and complete the transition to universal credit by 2017. I will be able to say more on the transition plan and the associated costs once we have collated and analysed the responses from the recent survey of local authorities. I expect to be able to do this by the end of the year.

Disability Premium

Margaret Curran: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many households with children receive the (a) severe disability premium, enhanced disability premium and support component of employment and support allowance, (b) severe disability premium and enhanced disability premium but not the support component of employment and support allowance, (c) severe disability premium and the support component of employment and support allowance but not the enhanced disability premium and (d) severe disability premium but not the enhanced disability premium or the support component of employment and support allowance.

Chris Grayling: The information as requested is not available.
	Information on employment and support allowance (ESA) claimants also entitled to disability premiums is recorded on the Department's administrative systems, but is not included in datasets underpinning routine publication of benefit statistics. To access the original datasets and carry out the necessary quality assurance would incur disproportionate cost.
	Information on ESA claimants, including the phase of the claim, can be found on the Department's website at:
	http://83.244.183.180/100pc/esa/tabtool_esa.html

Employment and Support Allowance

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people were in receipt of employment and support allowance in each month since May 2010.

Chris Grayling: The information is compiled on a quarterly basis and is given in the following table.
	
		
			 Employment and support allowance recipients, each quarter since May 2010—Great Britain 
			  Recipients 
			 May 2010 461,610 
			 August 2010 498,290 
			 November 2010 523,650 
			 February 2011 564,910 
			 Notes: 1. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10. 2. Employment and support allowance (ESA) replaced incapacity benefit and income support paid on the grounds of incapacity for new claims from 27 October 2008. 3. This analysis does not include credits only cases, i.e. those not receiving payment. 4. Figures are published at: http://83.244.183.180/100pc/esa/tabtool_esa.html Source: DWP Information Directorate: Work and Pensions Longitudinal Study.

Employment and Support Allowance: Cancer

Vernon Coaker: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether he plans to allow students who have to take time off university for cancer treatment to access employment and support allowance without withdrawing from their course.

Chris Grayling: Students are not normally eligible for social security benefits as they should be supported by the higher education system. However, there are exceptions which enable disabled students receiving disability living allowance to receive employment and support allowance. The Government have no plans for allowing exceptions to these rules in respect of students.
	When a student becomes too ill to continue their course and so abandons it, they are no longer treated as a student and may apply for employment and support allowance immediately.

Employment and Support Allowance: Cancer

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  what evidence he took into account when making the decision to limit employment and support allowance payments to one year for cancer patients;
	(2)  what discussions he had with representatives of Macmillan Cancer Care prior to his decision to limit employment and support allowance payments to one year for cancer patients; and if he will publish the minutes of these meetings.

Chris Grayling: As part of his spending review announcement last October my right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer set out the intention to introduce a time limit of one year for those claiming contributory employment and support allowance who are placed in the Work Related Activity Group. The change requires primary legislation and is included in the Welfare Reform Bill which is currently being considered by Parliament.
	Ministers have had a number of discussions with Macmillan Cancer Support since the spending review announcement, as we are determined that the benefits system should support people who are diagnosed with cancer in the most sensitive, fair and appropriate way. The Department has no interest in making it harder for those who cannot work to claim benefits and is committed to an ongoing process of review and improvement.
	As part of his second Independent Review, Professor Malcolm Harrington asked Macmillan to look in detail at how the work capability assessment assesses people with cancer and to provide to him with any recommendations for further improvements.
	The Department recently received these recommendations from Professor Harrington and is considering them carefully to understand whether they will improve the assessment further for individuals with cancer. The Department will come forward with any proposals shortly.

Employment Schemes: Transport

Shabana Mahmood: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what steps he is taking to ensure that the Work programme will support jobseekers entering employment with the costs of travelling to work where they have accepted employment outside their immediate area because no employment matching their skills and expertise was available within their immediate area.

Chris Grayling: The underlying principles of the Work programme give providers the flexibility to design an innovative and personalised approach to help an individual into sustained employment. In line with this approach, DWP do not specify that Work programme providers have to support participants with costs for travelling to work. However, the provider could choose to support these costs if they think it is needed to sustain employment. The provider should determine what advice and support is required for a participant returning to employment following consultation with the individual.

Employment: Durham

Pat Glass: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people in (a) County Durham and (b) North West Durham constituency were placed in employment through the Future Jobs Fund between October 2009 and April 2011.

Chris Grayling: The most recent Young Person's Guarantee statistics were published on 12 October 2011. Statistics are available on the Future Jobs Fund which covers the period from October 2009 to the end of March 2011. There were no further starts after March 2011.
	There have been 440 people placed in temporary employment via the Future Jobs Fund within the combined City of Durham, North Durham and North West Durham parliamentary constituencies of which 210 people solely within the North West Durham parliamentary constituency.
	Further breakdowns of this information can be found in the following table;
	
		
			 Table 1: Number of people within Durham that have started a Future Jobs Fund placement since October 2009 
			  Future Jobs Fund placements 
			  Combined City of Durham, North Durham and North West Durham parliamentary constituencies North West Durham parliamentary constituency 
			 October 2009 — — 
			 November 2009 — — 
			 December 2009 — — 
			 January 2010 10 — 
			 February 2010 20 10 
			 March 2010 70 40 
		
	
	
		
			 April 2010 20 10 
			 May 2010 10 10 
			 June 2010 40 20 
			 July 2010 40 20 
			 August 2010 20 10 
			 September 2010 30 10 
			 October 2010 50 30 
			 November 2010 40 10 
			 December 2010 20 10 
			 January 2011 50 10 
			 February 2011 10 10 
			 March 2011 10 10 
			 Total 440 210 
			 Notes: 1. Data Source—DWP LMS opportunities evaluation database October 2011. 2. Due to data protection protocols, figures are rounded to the nearest 10 to avoid disclosure. Due to rounding, totals may not be the sum of the individual cells. Months are calendar months. Source: Department for Work and Pensions, Labour Market Interventions Strategy Division

Government Procurement Card

Chris Kelly: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many Government Procurement Card transactions were made by his Department's officials withdrawing cash from automated teller machines from 2006-07 to 2009-10; at what cost; and on which dates.

Chris Grayling: There were no Government Procurement Card transactions for the Department for Work and Pensions involving cash transactions from automated teller machines from 2006-07 to 2009-10.
	It is not possible to withdraw cash using Government Procurement Cards as that particular Merchant Category Code is blocked by JP Morgan on all Department for Work and Pensions Government Procurement Cards.
	Department for Work and Pensions policy states:
	“There is NO cash withdrawal facility (via ATM or via “Cash back”) with any type of GPC account.”

Housing Benefit: Birmingham

Shabana Mahmood: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment he has made of the effect of the housing benefit cap on women living in Birmingham, Ladywood constituency.

Steve Webb: The caps do not have an impact on Birmingham as the prevailing local housing allowance rates are below: £250 for the shared and one-bedroom rates; £290 for the two-bedroom rate; £340 for the three-bedroom rate; and £400 for the four-bedroom rate.

Jobseeker's Allowance: Education

Eilidh Whiteford: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment he has made of the situation faced by individuals who have had jobseeker’s support withdrawn as a result of enrolling on a college course in order to improve their employability.

Chris Grayling: The Government recognise the importance that education and skills can play in helping people find work. Jobseekers can undertake part-time education or training at any point in their claim and continue to receive jobseeker's allowance as long as they continue to meet the basic conditions of entitlement.
	Nevertheless, jobseeker's allowance is primarily intended as a safety net for people who are unemployed and searching for work. While certain social security entitlements continue to be available to students in vulnerable groups—such as disabled students and students who are responsible for a child of qualifying age—the vast majority of full-time students are not entitled to benefits as a means of supporting themselves while studying. Financial support for students who wish to study full-time is instead generally through the grants and loans available through the further education system.
	Evidence from employment programmes suggests that jobseekers are better served by support that mixes ongoing job-search with integrated work-related training. Skills provision also works best when it meets the needs of both employers and those seeking employment.

Jobseeker's Allowance: Education

Eilidh Whiteford: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of the number of individuals who have stopped receiving jobseekers allowance in each month of the last two years as a result of taking up a higher education course in (a) England, (b) Scotland, (c) Wales and (d) Northern Ireland.

Chris Grayling: The information requested is not available. Claimants leaving jobseeker's allowance are not required to inform the Department of their destinations and hence the information that is collected is incomplete.
	Information is held on the number of jobseeker's allowance recipients who are referred to full-time training by a Jobcentre Plus adviser and subsequently moved onto a training allowance for the duration of this training. This information is shown in the following table:
	
		
			 Training allowance starts per month, jobseeker’s allowance claimants 
			  England Wales Scotland All 
			 2009     
			 June 13,655 570 934 15,159 
			 July 7,822 329 597 8,748 
			 August 7,609 339 714 8,662 
			 September 8,463 286 530 9,279 
			 October 7,602 262 528 8,392 
			 November 9,765 323 743 10,831 
			 December 4,761 152 311 5,224 
			      
			 2010     
			 January 8,445 271 646 9,362 
			 February 10,790 333 851 11,974 
			 March 13,863 503 1,153 15,519 
			 April 10,858 462 782 12,102 
			 May 12,569 619 1,107 14,295 
			 June 14,120 758 989 15,867 
			 July 11,850 730 928 13,508 
			 August 13,636 699 1,307 15,642 
			 September 13,634 976 1,127 15,737 
			 October 14,965 1,001 1,228 17,194 
			 November 21,834 1,600 1,697 25,131 
			 December 10,687 354 552 11,593 
		
	
	
		
			 2011     
			 January 21,486 1,472 1,473 24,431 
			 February 17,733 1,121 1,555 20,409 
			 March 14,614 1,097 1,594 17,305 
			 April 10,326 805 1,342 12,473 
			 May 14,808 726 1,879 17,413

Jobseeker's Allowance: Social Workers

Julian Huppert: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many care workers claimed jobseeker's allowance in the last (a) month and (b) 12 months.

Nick Hurd: I have been asked to reply.
	The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	Letter from Stephen Penneck, dated October 2011
	As Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking how many care workers claimed jobseeker's allowance in the last (a) month, (b) 12 months. (74737)
	The Office for National Statistics (ONS) compiles the number of claimants of Jobseeker's Allowance (JSA) from the Jobcentre Plus administrative system.
	Table 1 shows the number of people resident in the UK, whose usual occupation was care assistants and care workers and who were in receipt of JSA in each month since September 2010 up to the latest available period, September 2011.
	National and local area estimates for many labour market statistics, including employment, unemployment and claimant count are available on the NOMIS website at:
	http://www.nomisweb.co.uk
	
		
			 Table 1: Number of-persons (1)  claiming jobseeker's allowance resident in the UK, whose usual occupation is care assistants and home carers (2) 
			  Number 
			 September 2010 33,590 
			 October 2010 33,265 
			 November 2010 33,485 
			 December 2010 33,965 
			 January 2011 35,815 
			 February 2011 37,485 
			 March 2011 37,945 
			 April 2011 38,790 
			 May 2011 38,555 
			 June 2011 38,800 
			 July 2011 40,055 
			 August 2011 40,840 
			 September 2011 41,055 
			 (1) Data rounded to nearest 5. (2) SOC GROUP 61.15. Source: Jobcentre Plus administrative system

Mining: Safety

Stephen Lloyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment he has made of the likelihood of a conflict of interest arising from the Health and Safety Executive Mines and Quarries Unit having responsibility for both routine examinations of mines and accident investigation.

Chris Grayling: The primary responsibility for managing risks in mining rests with the mine owner. The regulator's role is to encourage and promote good standards of health and safety management and, where necessary, to secure compliance through enforcement.
	HSE intervenes with the industry both through targeted proactive inspection and reactive investigation of incidents. It fully recognises the potential for a conflict of interest arising from an investigation into a serious incident where there has been previous engagement with the site in question.
	It has well-established procedures for dealing with any such issues if they arise. HSE also works closely, with the police whenever there is a fatal incident and both regulators routinely review their approach as co-investigators in such cases.

Musculoskeletal Disorders

Robert Buckland: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment his Department has made of the costs to business of musculoskeletal conditions in the work force.

Maria Miller: No assessment has been made by the Department for Work and Pensions of the costs to businesses of musculoskeletal conditions in the work force.

Musculoskeletal Disorders

Robert Buckland: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment his Department has made of the potential saving to the public purse of reducing the number of people diagnosed with musculoskeletal conditions in receipt of (a) employment support allowance and (b) disability living allowance.

Chris Grayling: The impact assessments and equality impact assessments which accompanied the Welfare Reform Bill set out the financial impacts on the Exchequer and individuals of the policies contained in the Bill. These are published at the following link:
	http://www.dwp.gov.uk/policy/welfare%2Dreform/legislation%2Dand%2Dkey%2Ddocuments/welfare%2Dreform%2Dbill%2D2011/impact%2Dassessments%2Dand%2Dequality/
	Entitlement to employment and support allowance is determined using the work capability assessment which is based on the premise that eligibility should not be based on the diagnosis of a specific condition, but rather on the way that the condition limits an individual's functional, capability.
	Subject to parliamentary approval, we intend to replace disability living allowance for people of working age with personal independence payment, a new, more transparent and sustainable benefit with an objective assessment of individual need. Exchequer savings from this measure are estimated to be around £325 million in 2013-14, rising to £1.25 billion by 2015-16. The assessment criteria for personal independence payment are still being designed, tested and consulted on. It is, therefore, not possible to estimate the impact of the reforms on particular groups.

Pension Credit

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many couples who receive pension credit include one partner who is under the qualifying age for pension credit; and what the average monetary value per week of pension credit is to such couples.

Steve Webb: As at February 2011 there were 93,200 pension credit recipients who had a partner aged below 60. The average amount of pension credit in payment to these couples was £110.46.
	Notes:
	1. The best statistics on benefits are now derived from 100% data sources. However the 5% sample data still provide some detail not yet available form the 100% data sources. DWP recommends that, where the detail is only available on the 5% sample data, the proportions derived should be applied to the overall 100% total for the benefit. This has been done here.
	2. Case load figures are rounded to the nearest hundred.
	3. Average amounts are shown to two decimal places.
	4. The data held is for age 60. The qualifying age for pension credit is increasing in line with the increase in women's state pension age. At February 2011 the qualifying age for pension credit was between 60 and four months and 60 and five months.
	Source:
	Department for Work and Pensions, Information Directorate, 5% sample.

Pension Credit

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of the potential savings arising from the provision in schedule 2, paragraph 64, of the Welfare Reform Bill to exclude couples from claiming pension credit if only one has reached the qualifying age.

Chris Grayling: The Government have decided that households where one member of a couple is over the qualifying age for pension credit and the other member is of working-age, will be entitled to claim universal credit.
	The Government believe that all people of working age who can work should be expected to do so and that it is not right to continue the current position where pension credit can go to households which contain a person of working age without that person having to meet any work-related requirements. The universal credit approach provides financial support to such couples, whilst giving the working-age member of the couple access to support in finding work.
	We have already acknowledged that it will be important not to undermine the stability and outcomes for existing pension credit customers, so the change will not apply to couples already in receipt of pension credit.
	It is estimated that this policy could save up to £100 million over this spending review. Because of the interaction with other changes to support pensioners, which are still being developed, we are not yet able to provide a firm estimate for a long run figure for savings.

Pensions

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will bring forward proposals to introduce a pro rata system for pension payments; what recent representations he has received on the issue; what response he gave; and if he will make a statement.

Steve Webb: Payment of state pension starts from the first full benefit week that follows the date a person reaches state pension age. State pension is paid in full weeks and this means that for most people there will be a gap between their birthday (when they reach pension age) and the day they receive their first payment of pension. The gap could be anything between one and six days, depending on the person's birthday and their benefit payday.
	If a person's birthday happens to fall on the same day of the week as the first day of their benefit week, there is no gap between that birthday and the first day for which payment is due. For most other people, there will be. However, because we make pension payments in complete weeks, there are no part-week payments at the end of a claim either, when a full week's benefit is also paid and thus the system balances itself out.
	There are administrative costs associated with making part-week payments and it is important that we continue to deliver the Department's service as cost-effectively as possible. If we made part-week payments at the commencement of a claim then logically we should seek to recover any days' overpayment at the end this would be at a cost to the Department.
	The Government have no plans to change this arrangement at the present time. I do receive letters on this subject from time to time and my response has been along similar lines.

Social Security Benefits

Tracey Crouch: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer of 10 October 2011, Official Report, column 251W, on social security benefits: EU nationals, how much was paid in benefits to (a) UK and (b) non-UK EU nationals in each of the last five years; and how many (i) UK and (ii) non-UK EU nationals claimed each benefit type in each year.

Chris Grayling: The information requested is not available.
	The UK's benefit payment systems do not record the nationality of people receiving benefits and therefore it is not possible to determine cost of benefits paid to EU nationals. I have, however, commissioned work to make information available on the nationality of benefit claimants.
	Those who have worked in the UK and paid national insurance contributions may claim contributory benefits such as contribution-based jobseeker's allowance if they satisfy the contributions and other conditions for the benefit.

Social Security Benefits: EU Nationals

Anne Main: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the contribution by the Minister of State, Department for Work and Pensions, the hon. Member for Thornbury and Yate (Steve Webb) of 12 July 2011, Official Report, column 73WH, on benefits (EU nationals), when he expects to make available information on the nationality of benefit claimants; and what steps he has taken to make available information on the nationality of benefit claimants.

Chris Grayling: I have commissioned work to release information regarding the nationality of benefits claimants at the point of registration for a national insurance number. I am in discussion with Government colleagues, and hope to make preliminary statistics on the matter available shortly.
	In the longer term, I have asked my officials to look into ways of capturing this information at source.

Social Security Benefits: Scotland

Margaret Curran: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much and what proportion of the welfare budget is spent in Scotland.

Chris Grayling: In 2010-11 the Department for Work and Pensions spent around £14.7 billion on benefit expenditure and administration costs in Scotland, which is around 9.2 % of total expenditure.
	Note:
	Figures do not include expenditure on war pensions which is the responsibility of the Ministry of Defence, or tax credit and child benefit expenditure which is the responsibility of HM Revenue and Customs. The total DWP expenditure figure does not include welfare spending in Northern Ireland.
	Source:
	DWP Resource Accounts 2010/11 Table 6 and DWP statistical and accounting data.

Stress

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what steps he plans to take to implement the recommendation of Dame Carol Black's Review entitled Working for a healthier tomorrow.

Maria Miller: The Government have an active health, work and well-being programme which responds to the issues raised in Dame Carol Black's review of the health of Britain's working age people. Overseen by the GB wide cross-Government Health, Work and Well-being Executive and advised by the Health, Work and Well-being National Stakeholder Council, the programme includes action to support individuals, employers and healthcare professionals and aims to:
	create new perspectives on health and work
	improve work and workplaces; and
	support people to work.
	Specific elements of the programme include:
	locally designed proof of concept pilots of Fit for Work Services to help sickness absentees return to work more quickly;
	occupational health advice services pilots for small businesses and General Medical Practitioners (GPs) to provide help with individual employee cases;
	a “fit note”, a revised medical certificate to help GPs switch the focus of their advice to what people can do rather than what they cannot;
	a national education programme for GPs which aims to improve their knowledge, skills and confidence when dealing with health and work issues; and
	a national network of Health Work and Well-being Co-ordinators to stimulate action on health, work and well-being issues in their area and offer advice and support to small businesses.
	All measures and pilots will be fully evaluated.

Third Sector

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many letters he has received on funding for civil sector organisations within his Department's area of responsibility in each month since 1 June 2010; and if he will make a statement.

Chris Grayling: The information is not available other than at disproportionate cost.

Universal Credit

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of the cost to his Department of transferring to the universal credit system.

Chris Grayling: Universal credit is expected to be introduced in October 2013, and individuals will be migrated to universal credit over the subsequent four years. Costs and benefits over this transition period will depend upon the precise nature of the migration strategy. We are actively working on this at present, and decisions will be made at the most appropriate juncture.
	The impact assessment updated in September 2011 sets out an assessment of the costs and benefits once universal credit has been fully implemented and transitional protection has been exhausted.
	Overall, it is estimated that benefit expenditure will be around £2 billion higher once universal credit is fully implemented. This will be a cost to the Exchequer and the taxpayer of around £4 billion as a result of entitlement changes and increased take-up. Offsetting this it is estimated that there will be savings of around £2 billion due to reduced fraud, error and overpayments together with changes to the earnings disregards that currently exist in tax credits. In the longer term reduced complexity has the potential to lead to savings of more than £0.5 billion a year in administrative costs.

Universal Credit

Nicola Blackwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what action will be taken in cases where a partner receiving universal credit on behalf of a couple are found to be (a) abusive of the other partner and (b) not supporting the other partner financially.

Chris Grayling: We expect that the vast majority of claimants will manage their universal credit payment by either electing to use a joint bank account or opting to have it paid directly to one member of the household.
	There may, however, be exceptional cases that require alternative arrangements, and we are considering the circumstances for and details of these. For example, where there is proven abuse of the money by one partner, the Government already have and will retain the power to direct payments to the other partner, or there may be instances where it is more appropriate to divide the payment.

Universal Credit

Nicola Blackwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions with reference to paragraph 3(d) of the revised version of Universal Credit Policy Briefing Note 2, 12 September 2011, in what situation all or part of the payment of income support, income-based jobseekers' allowance or other benefits can currently be redirected from the main claimant to their partner in couples; and in how many cases in each such situation this has occurred in the last five years.

Chris Grayling: Currently, couples cannot claim independently as single people. They can decide for themselves which partner claims benefit but the partner must agree to the claimant claiming for them. If, exceptionally, the couple cannot agree who should claim, the Department's decision maker can make the decision for them. This also applies to JSA Joint Claimants. Additionally, a split payment may be considered in certain cases, for example, that of domestic violence.
	We do not hold information on split payment cases.

Universal Credit

Nicola Blackwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether money management advice will be provided to universal credit recipients moving from fortnightly to monthly payments; what form any such advice will take; and what the means of delivery will be of such advice.

Chris Grayling: The Department recognises that the move from fortnightly to monthly payments represents a change for many families and we are developing a package of support to ensure recipients of universal credit are able to manage this change effectively. This support is likely to include a mix of financial advice and interim and bridging loans.

Work Capability Assessment

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people have failed to attend a work capability assessment (WCA) appointment arranged by Atos Healthcare on behalf of his Department and subsequently had their benefit stopped in each (a) (i) parliamentary constituency and (ii) Jobcentre Plus area and (b) for each benefit type since the inception of the WCA.

Chris Grayling: The information that is available will be placed in the Library.
	Please note the Department holds information on the number of times a person has failed to attend a work capability assessment (WCA) appointment and the number of claims that have been closed before the assessment process is complete. However, there are a number of reasons that a claim may be closed, so we cannot be certain that a failure to attend a WCA is the direct reason for a claim being closed.
	Therefore the tables provided show the number of claims that have been closed prior to the assessment being complete and of these the number that have, and have not, had a failure to attend a WCA recorded. This gives a broad indication only of the numbers of claims where a failure to attend may have led to the case being closed.
	The information given relates to all new ESA claims started between October 2008 and November 2010 (the latest information available) where their claim was closed before their initial assessment was complete. Information on incapacity benefit claimants going through reassessment using the work capability assessment is not available.
	The information is not available at parliamentary constituency level so local authority, area has been given as an alternative.
	The data presented come from benefit claims data held by the Department for Work and Pensions and functional assessment data from Atos Healthcare. It is consistent with the official statistics publication on ESA and the WCA. The latest report was published in July 2011 and can be found on the internet at the following link:
	http://research.dwp.gov.uk/asd/workingage/index.php?page=esa_wca

Work Capability Assessment

Tom Greatrex: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether his Department recognises fibromyalgia for the purposes of the work capability assessment.

Chris Grayling: DWP recognises fibromyalgia as a real and potentially significantly disabling condition. Where a clinical diagnosis of fibromyalgia has been made full account will be taken of its disabling effects as part of the work capability assessment.

Work Capability Assessment

Tom Greatrex: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what guidance his Department has issued to Atos-approved healthcare professionals in relation to fibromyalgia and the work capability assessment.

Chris Grayling: All healthcare professionals working for Atos Healthcare who carry out WCA assessments undertake a distance learning module on fibromyalgia within 12 months of joining the organisation. The distance learning module is approved by the chief medical adviser to the DWP. In addition, Atos healthcare professionals are required to undertake a programme of continuing medical education that is agreed with the Department. A module on chronic fatigue syndrome and fibromyalgia is included in the suite of CME topics available to the healthcare professionals.

Work Capability Assessment: Autism

Shabana Mahmood: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will take steps to ensure that adults with autism are accompanied to assessments by another person to ensure that assessments are fair.

Chris Grayling: We recognise that, for some individuals, attending a face-to-face assessment can be a stressful experience. Where there is sufficient evidence available, face-to-face assessments will not be carried out in order to determine benefit entitlement. In addition, you can be assured that health care professionals who carry out the face-to-face assessments are trained in dealing with customers with additional needs and that when people are asked to come for an assessment they are encouraged to bring a friend or relative with them.
	Although we are still developing the delivery model for personal independence payment assessment, the same principles will apply. We recognise the importance of ensuring that the assessment process is appropriate to individual's circumstances, including individuals with autistic spectrum disorders. For this reason we have made clear that individuals who are asked to attend a face-to-face consultation will be able to bring with them a relation, friend, carer or advocate if they would find it helpful.

Working Conditions: Temperature

Iain Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will bring forward proposals to set a maximum permitted working temperature.

Chris Grayling: In 2009, HSE commissioned an independent review into workplace temperatures, which drew on the wide range of non-Government research available. Following this review, conducted a survey about temperatures in workplaces, to which 2,933 completed responses were submitted. Evaluation of this and other data provided little evidence of significant numbers of illnesses, long or short-term, physical or psychological, caused or exacerbated by exposure to high temperatures. Given this, the Government have no plans to set a maximum working temperature.
	Guidance currently available on the HSE website provides advice to business on how to deal with high temperatures.

BUSINESS, INNOVATION AND SKILLS

Competition Commission: Enterprise Act 2002

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills whether his Department retains powers to refer the newspaper distributor sector to the Competition Commission under the Enterprise Act 2002.

Edward Davey: Responsibility and powers to refer markets to the Competition Commission falls to the Office of Fair Trading and those sector regulators with concurrent competition powers. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills retains a power to refer markets under specific limited circumstances. Following the Machinery of Government changes announced in December 2010 responsibility for the media sector falls to my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport.

Apprentices: Birmingham

Shabana Mahmood: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many creative apprenticeships are being undertaken by people resident in Birmingham, Ladywood constituency.

John Hayes: There were 10 apprenticeship starts on the Creative Apprenticeship Framework in Birmingham Ladywood parliamentary constituency in the 2009/10 academic year, the latest year for which final data are available.
	The figure for apprenticeship starts has been rounded to the nearest 10. Geographic information is based upon the home postcode of the learner.
	Information on the number of apprenticeship starts is published in a quarterly statistical first release (SFR). The latest SFR was published on 23 June 2011:
	http://www.thedataservice.org.uk/statistics/statisticalfirstrelease/sfr_current

BAE Systems: Apprentices

Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what steps his Department is taking to assist apprentices affected by the redundancies announced by BAE Systems in finding new apprenticeships.

John Hayes: The National Apprenticeship Service has end-to-end responsibility for delivering apprenticeships in England. As part of this role, the National Apprenticeship Service work is with employers to try and find alternative placements for those individuals at risk of redundancy.
	In this case, the National Apprenticeship Service and Skills Funding Agency are working together to provide BAE with site-level support across the country to manage any transition activities for individuals as necessary. BAE is sensitive to ensuring that apprenticeship schemes are protected and will look to ensure that existing apprenticeships can be completed. Where individuals are unable to complete their apprenticeships at the same site, the apprenticeship programme has sufficient flexibility within its contracts to allow those affected to move to other BAE sites to complete their training.

Business

Iain Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will take steps to increase the number of employee-owned businesses.

Edward Davey: In our drive for sustainable growth, this Department is working with Cabinet Office to promote employee ownership and social enterprise in both public and the private sectors as business forms that can support innovation, create jobs and deliver effective public services.

Business: Audit

Iain Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of audit committees in (a) highlighting risks within a business, (b) understanding the business model and the framework in which a business operates and (c) assessing the effectiveness of internal controls within a business.

Edward Davey: The Financial Reporting Council's (FRC) Corporate Governance Code sets out principles and best practice for good corporate governance and covers the role and responsibilities of audit committees. In September the FRC published a document setting out how they will achieve the aims set out in their paper ‘Effective Company Stewardship’ to extend the remit of audit committees.
	In September the FRC also published a paper, ‘Boards and Risk—A Summary of Discussions with Companies, Investors and Advisers’, which considered the approach of companies and boards to risk and how that risk is managed. This was based on extensive discussion with market participants about how they operate. One of the key conclusions is that a company's ability to understand and articulate its business model leads naturally to a better understanding of risk and how it should be prioritised.
	In September I published a consultation, ‘The Future of Narrative Reporting’, which describes a new, simpler and more user-friendly reporting framework for UK companies. This framework will enable companies to provide investors with a clear description of the company's strategy, business model and principal risks.

Departmental Billing

Eilidh Whiteford: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what proportion of invoices from suppliers his Department paid within 10 days of receipt in July and August 2010.

Edward Davey: From May 2010 onwards the Department has measured its prompt payment performance against a new cross-Government target of paying supplier invoices within five working days. Against this target, the Department paid 93.9% and 93.5% of supplier invoices in July and August 2010 respectively.
	In comparison, the percentage of supplier invoices paid within 10 working days in the same period was 99.1% and 99.6%.
	For information, the Department publishes its payment performance at:
	http://www.bis.gov.uk/about/procurement/prompt-payment/bis-payment-performance

Departmental Buildings

Eilidh Whiteford: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what (a) building and (b) refurbishment projects his Department plans to carry out in (i) 2011-12 and (ii) 2012-13; and what the cost of each such project will be.

Edward Davey: The Department plans the following refurbishment projects during the current financial year:
	Lift Refurbishments; £1.1 million including VAT (estimated cost.)
	External Decoration for 1 Victoria street which is currently out to tender.
	Any decisions regarding projects for the next financial year will be decided at a later date.

Fines

Eilidh Whiteford: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many transport-related fines his Department and its predecessors have settled on behalf of its staff in each year since 2007; and at what cost.

Edward Davey: The Department has not settled any transport- related fines on behalf of staff in any of the years since 2007. The Department's policy is that it will not settle any transport-related fines incurred by its staff.

Departmental Manpower

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many (a) full- and (b) part-time staff his Department employed in each year since 1997.

Edward Davey: In June 2009 the Department for Business Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (BERR) was merged with the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills (DIUS) to create the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS). Therefore we only have access to data from this date.
	The following table shows how many full-time and part-time staff BIS employed in March 2010 and March 2011.
	
		
			  31 March 2010 31 March 2011 
			 Full-time 3,328 2,915 
			 Part-time 400 369 
			 Note: Figures include UKT1

Departmental Public Expenditure

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how much his Department spent on new furnishings in the last year.

Edward Davey: During the period 1 October 2010 to 30 September 2011 the Department spent £92,369.82 (excluding VAT) on furniture.

Sick Leave

Mike Freer: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills for how many days on average his Department's staff in each pay grade were absent from work as a result of ill health in 2010-11.

Edward Davey: The following table shows the average working days lost (AWDL) in BIS by grade, during the period 1 April 2010-31 March 2011.
	The data form part of the quarterly return to Cabinet Office on absence. Further information is available on the BIS website:
	http://www.bis.gov.uk/transparency/staff
	
		
			 Grade AWDL 
			 Administrative Assistant 4.3 
			 Administrative Officer 6.5 
			 Executive Officer 5.7 
			 Higher Executive Officer 3.5 
			 Senior Executive Officer 2.5 
			 Grade 7 2.4 
			 Grade 6 2.0 
			 SCS 0.6

E-mail

Jack Dromey: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills whether any (a) Ministers, (b) officials and (c) special advisers in his Department use private e-mail accounts for the conduct of Government business.

Edward Davey: The Ministerial Code, the Code of Conduct for Special Advisers, and the Civil Service Code set out how Ministers, special advisers and officials should conduct Government business.

English Language: Education

Shabana Mahmood: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what recent progress has been made on arrangements for English for speakers of other languages funding for asylum seekers.

John Hayes: The eligibility for asylum seekers to access funding for skills training are described in paragraphs 32 and 33 of the Skills Funding Agency 2011/12 Learner Eligibility and Contribution Rules (Version 2.1, August 2011). This can be found at:
	http://readingroom.lsc.gov.uk/SFA/LearnerEligibilityand ContributionRules_2011_12_12Aug2011__June_revision_ V2.1.pdf
	From the 2011/12 academic year, where English language skills have been identified as a barrier to entering employment, full Government funding is provided for English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) qualifications delivered to unemployed people in receipt of jobseeker’s allowance or in the Employment and Support Allowance (Work-Related Activity) Group. Further education colleges and training organisations also have local discretion to provide fully subsidised courses for people on a wider range of benefits where the training is to help them enter employment. Learners are expected to share the costs of publicly funded ESOL courses with Government where full fee remission is not applicable. The Government will no longer fund ESOL courses delivered in the workplace. This is to ensure publicly-funded training provision is focused on people whose lack of English is preventing them from finding work.
	This Department and the Department for Communities and Local Government are working in partnership to develop new forms of support for individuals who need language skills to assist with integration and community cohesion. I will announce further details in due course.
	The potential impact on adult learners participating in ESOL courses of the changes to eligibility criteria for fee remission set out in the Government's ‘Skills for Sustainable Growth' strategy (November 2010) are described in an equality impact assessment, published by this Department on 18 July 2011. This can be found at:
	http://www.bis.gov.uk/assets/biscore/further-education-skills/docs/e/11-1045-english-for-speakers-of-other-languages-equality-impact.pdf

English Language: Education

Shabana Mahmood: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what representations he has received from further education colleges on English for speakers of other languages funding since 1 August 2011.

John Hayes: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, the Member for Twickenham (Vince Cable), meets regularly with representatives from further education colleges to discuss a wide range of issues.
	I have asked the Association of Colleges to advise me on developing, in consultation with further education colleges and providers, an effective methodology for targeting funds at settled communities in which language barriers inhibit individual opportunity and community cohesion. This is part of the partnership formed between this Department and the Department for Communities and Local Government, to develop new forms of support for individuals who need language skills to assist with integration and community cohesion. I will announce further details shortly.

Export Controls

David Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills whether an exporter who discovers after having completed required self-rating checks that the export goods are controlled is presumed by his Department to have knowingly exported controlled goods.

Mark Prisk: It is for the courts, not the Government, to determine whether, having considered all relevant evidence in the circumstances of a particular case, the conduct of an exporter constitutes “knowledge” for the purposes of export control legislation.

Export Credits Guarantee Department: Government Procurement Card

Charlie Elphicke: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what the (a) date of purchase, (b) amount, (c) supplier and (d) level 3 or enhanced transaction entry was of each transaction undertaken by the Export Credits Guarantee Department using the Government Procurement Card in (i) 2007-08, (ii) 2008-09 and (iii) 2009-10.

Edward Davey: The Export Credits Guarantee Department does not have a Government Procurement Card.

Export Credits Guarantee: EU Action

Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what assessment he has made of the effects on the UK of the proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on the application of certain guidelines in the field of officially supported export credits.

Edward Davey: The proposal will have no impact on UK companies.
	The proposal relates to official export credit agencies (ECAs), including the UK's Export Credits Guarantee Department (ECGD). It incorporates a recent version of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Arrangement on Officially Supported Export Credits into EU law to replace an earlier outdated version, and introduces new reporting and transparency requirements. ECGD has already aligned its policies and procedures with the version of the OECD arrangement now being adopted into EU law, and ECGD already publishes an annual report and accounts that provides comprehensive information on its operations.
	The proposal was considered by the European Scrutiny Committee on 7 September as a document not raising questions of sufficient legal or political importance to warrant a substantive report to the House.

Further Education: Birmingham

Shabana Mahmood: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many students were enrolled in further education in Birmingham, Ladywood constituency (a) on 1 September 2011 and (b) in each of the last five years.

John Hayes: The following table shows the total number of learners participating in Government-funded further education throughout the academic year in Birmingham, Ladywood constituency from 2005/06 to 2009/10, the latest year for which final data are available. Information is not available for the number of enrolments on 1 September 2011.
	
		
			 Further education participation in Birmingham, Ladywood constituency, 2005/06 to 2009/10 
			  Total 
			 2005/06 18,650 
			 2006/07 17,290 
			 2007/08 16,720 
			 2008/09(1) 18,290 
			 2009/10(1) 16,730 
			 (1) Figures for 2008/09 onwards are not directly comparable to earlier years due to the introduction of demand-led funding. More information on demand-led funding is available at: http://www.thedataservice.org.uk/datadictionary/businessdefinitions/Demand+Led+Funding.htm Notes: 1. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10. 2. Geography information is based upon the home postcode of the learner. 3. These data include Learner Responsive, Apprenticeships, Train to Gain, Adult Safeguarded Learning and University for Industry funding streams. 4. Participation Is based on a count of learners undertaking learning on any day within a given academic year. Source: Individualised Learner Record 
		
	
	Information on further education and skills participation and achievement is published in a quarterly statistical first release (SFR). The latest SFR was published on 23 June 2011:
	http://www.thedataservice.org.uk/statistics/statisticalfirstrelease/sfr_current

Further Education: Assessments

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what steps (a) he and (b) the Higher Education Funding Council for England plan to take to ensure that universities continue to validate higher education qualifications delivered in further education colleges.

John Hayes: holding answer 13 October 2011
	It is for individual universities and colleges to make arrangements for the validation of courses, where they feel this is of mutual benefit and in line with their strategic priorities. However, the withdrawal of validation arrangements from colleges by partner universities can be destabilising and we are concerned by reports that some universities might be proposing to end their partnerships with further education colleges, in some cases without good reason.
	The recent Higher Education White Paper has signalled the Government's commitment to opening up the higher education sector, including to further education colleges, to meet the changing needs of employers, individuals and communities. Under our reforms further education colleges that can attract students and wish to expand can benefit from the creation of a flexible margin of about 20,000 places in 2012/13 to support expansion by providers who combine good quality with value for money.
	The White Paper also sets out our proposals to make it easier for further education colleges to access a wider range of external degrees, in addition to existing offerings from the Open University and the University of London, by allowing non-teaching bodies to apply for degree awarding powers, which will give more choice for colleges.

Further Education: Assessments

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many universities plan to stop validating higher education qualifications in further education colleges in 2012-13; which courses will be affected; and if he will make a statement.

John Hayes: holding answer 13 October 2011
	The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills does not hold information on which universities plan to stop validating courses in further education colleges. The withdrawal of validation arrangements from colleges by partner universities can be destabilising and we are concerned by reports that some universities might be proposing to end their partnerships with further education colleges, in some cases without good reason.
	The recent Higher Education White Paper has signalled the Government's commitment to opening up the higher education sector, including to further education colleges, to meet the changing needs of employers, individuals and communities. Under our reforms further education colleges that can attract students and wish to expand can benefit from the creation of a flexible margin of about 20,000 places in 2012/13 to support expansion by providers who combine good quality with value for money.
	The White Paper also sets out our proposals to make it easier for further education colleges to access a wider range of external degrees, in addition to existing offerings from the Open University and the University of London, by allowing non-teaching bodies to apply for degree awarding powers, which will give more choice for colleges.

Procurement

John Spellar: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what steps his Department is taking to ensure that Government procurement supports domestic (a) industry, (b) skills, (c) manufacturing capability and (b) supply chains.

Edward Davey: The Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, my right hon. Friend the Member for Twickenham (Vince Cable), made a statement on 5 July that the Government are considering whether the UK is best applying the EU procurement rules and managing our procurements, to maintain competitive supply chains to meet our strategic needs, cost-effectively, in the long-term. Conclusions arising from this work will be published as part of the growth review, alongside the autumn statement.

Intellectual Property

Mike Weatherley: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills pursuant to the answer of 7 September 2011, Official Report, columns 716-7W, on copyright, what assessment he has made of the effects of competitiveness of the UK corporate tax regime on companies which develop and exploit intellectual property.

David Gauke: I have been asked to reply.
	The Government are committed to creating the most competitive corporate tax system in the G20 and are undertaking a significant programme of reform. This includes reductions in the main rate of corporation tax which will benefit all companies including those which derive profits from copyright and other forms of intellectual property. The Government are also introducing the Patent Box which will improve the competitiveness of the UK for high-tech businesses, encouraging a wide range of sectors to invest in the UK.

Mature Students: Finance

Vernon Coaker: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what steps he has taken to provide financial support for mature students following changes to the Adult Learning Grant.

John Hayes: Adults on further education and training courses, at colleges and training providers in receipt of Skills Funding Agency funding for the purposes of delivering adult skills provision, may seek financial support directly from their place of study.
	The Adult Learning Grant (ALG) will become part of Discretionary Learner Support (DLS) from the start of the 2011/12 academic year. DLS is administered by colleges and training providers, and enables adult learners to seek assistance with child care, residential costs and general hardship needs.
	Adults receiving ALG in 2010/11, who are continuing on their course in 2011/12, have been given a Notice of Entitlement to enable them to receive the grant for a final year.
	Professional and Career Development Loans may also be applied for. They are similar to the Government-supported HE loan in that repayment is deferred while in learning.

Military Equipment

James Clappison: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what assessment he has made of reports of the use of UK-supplied military equipment for the repression of protestors in Bahrain; and if he will make a statement.

Alistair Burt: I have been asked to reply.
	The Government assessed information from our diplomatic posts in the region, including Bahrain, as well as media and non-governmental organisation reporting. We found no information to suggest that UK supplied equipment was used during protests in Bahrain earlier this year.

Multinational Companies: Company Accounts

William Bain: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what representations his Department has made to the (a) G20 and (b) G77 on requiring the publication by multinational companies of accounts for each country in which they operate.

Edward Davey: The Government made clear, in the statement following the G20 Finance Ministers' meeting in February by the Chancellor of the Exchequer and in the Prime Minister's speech in Lagos in July, their support for EU action to improve transparency and reporting in the extractive industries to match the standards in the Dodd Frank legislation in the US.

Overseas Trade: Nigeria

Meg Hillier: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what support his Department is providing to small and medium-sized enterprises developing trade links with Nigeria.

Mark Prisk: UK Trade and Investment (UKTI), a joint department of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, provides expert trade advice and practical support to UK-based companies wishing to access 96 overseas markets, including Nigeria.
	Specific services include market research, details of overseas business opportunities, participation in trade missions and seminars, opportunities to exhibit at key trade events and access to major buyers, Governments and specific supply chains in overseas markets.

Patents: Applications

Iain Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will bring forward proposals to amend the regulatory regime in respect of patent applications for the purposes of encouraging (a) innovation, (b) product development and (c) employment creation.

Edward Davey: The law relating to patent applications has been amended and modernised in several ways during the last five to 10 years. These changes have implemented new international treaties, reduced or removed regulatory burdens on patent applicants, and helped with the enforcement of rights. More recently, this Government have introduced a number of new services for users of the patents system—most notably a fast-track procedure for international patent applications coming into the UK, and a free online service for viewing patent application documents. Furthermore, the Hargreaves Review of Intellectual Property recently looked at the UK patents system in detail, with an emphasis on ensuring that the system supports growth and innovation—and made no recommendations relating to the law governing the patent application process. For these reasons, no further changes are planned at this time.

Post Offices

Michael Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many post offices have (a) opened and (b) closed in (i) England, (ii) Scotland, (iii) Wales and (iv) Northern Ireland since May 2010.

Edward Davey: The information requested is an operational matter for Post Office Ltd. I have therefore asked Paula Vennells, the managing director of Post Office Ltd, to respond directly to the hon. Member, and for a copy of her reply to be placed in the Libraries of the House.
	However, it is worth noting that the Government have committed £1.34 billion of funding for the duration of the spending review to modernise the Post Office network and safeguard its future. Furthermore, there will be no programme of post office closures under this Government.

Post Offices

Michael Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what proportion of the urban population lived within one mile of a post office or sub-post office in (a) Scotland, (b) England, (c) Wales, (d) the UK and (e) each constituency (i) in 1997 and (ii) on the most recent date for which information is available.

Edward Davey: The information requested relates to the access criteria that were introduced in 2007 after a national consultation. Post Office Ltd is required to meet and report on their compliance with the criteria by Government. I have therefore asked Paula Vennells, the Managing Director of Post Office Ltd, to respond directly to the hon. Member providing information relating to the UK population at the date the access criteria was introduced, and for the most recent date for which information is available—and for a copy of her reply to be placed in the Libraries of the House.
	It should be noted that this Government have maintained the same six strict access criteria, which include the requirement that 95% of the total urban population across the UK are to be within one mile of their nearest post office outlet. The access criteria are a national requirement and relate to the national network and are not applied, or measured, at a constituency level, or for Scotland, England or Wales.
	However, the access criteria do contain a requirement for 95% of the population of every postcode district to be within six miles of their nearest Post Office outlet. I have therefore asked Paula Vennells to also provide this information.

Retail Trade: Competition

Simon Hart: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what discussions his Department has had on the potential for legislating against the retail practice of loss leaders in respect of (a) electrical and (b) other goods.

Edward Davey: None. Competition matters relating to the pricing of goods and services fall to the Office of Fair Trading as the UK's independent competition authority.

Retail Trade: Competition

Julie Elliott: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills whether he plans to bring forward legislative proposals to prevent electrical dealers in the retail market from offering products for sale below cost.

Edward Davey: The Government do not have any plans to legislate in this area. Competition matters relating to pricing of goods and services fall to the Office of Fair Trading as the responsible independent competition authority.

Supermarkets: Competition

Vernon Coaker: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what steps he plans to take to protect small local businesses from dominance by large chain supermarkets.

Edward Davey: Responsibility for enforcing competition law which prohibits certain anti-competitive agreements between firms and abuse of a dominant position in a market falls to the Office of Fair Trading as the responsible independent competition authority. The Government have brought legislation to Parliament to introduce a Groceries Code Adjudicator to enforce the Groceries Supply Code of Practice which ensures that large retailers must deal fairly and lawfully with their suppliers.

UK Trade and Investment: Welsh Assembly Government

Alun Cairns: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills on what dates UK Trade and Investment had discussions with the Minister for Business, Enterprise and Technology in the Welsh Assembly Government, in the last 12 months; and what the subject was of such discussions.

Mark Prisk: UK Trade and Investment has had no discussions with the Minister for Business, Enterprise, Technology and Science since the Minister took up this new post in May.

Young People: Unemployment

Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many young people aged between 16 and 24 years old were not in education, employment or training in (a) England, (b) the west midlands and (c) Dudley borough in the latest period for which figures are available.

John Hayes: The following table provides estimates of the number and proportion of people aged(1) 16 to 24 not in education, employment or training (NEET) in England, the west midlands and Dudley borough in 2010, the latest year available. This information is from the Annual Population Survey.
	
		
			 16 to 24-year-olds not in education, employment or training (NEET) 
			  Number Percentage Confidence  i nterval 
			 England 994,000 16.6 +/- 0.5 ppt 
			 West midlands 119,000 18.7 +/- 1.5 ppt 
			 Dudley 7,000 17.4 +/- 5.8 ppt 
			 Base: 16 to 24-year-olds Source: 2010 Annual Population Survey 
		
	
	It is important to note that estimates for local authorities are subject to large sampling variability and should therefore be treated with caution and viewed in conjunction with their Confidence Intervals, which indicate how accurate an estimate is. For example, a Confidence Interval of +/- 5.8 percentage points (ppt) means that the true value is between 5.8 ppt above the estimate and 5.8 ppt below the estimate.
	(1) Age used is academic age, which is defined as the respondents age as at the preceding 31 August.